Monday, May 31, 2010

Calder Redux

Alexander Calder - Caltech Arches
Previously we mentioned an Alexander Calder exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum that was an eye-opener for us in regard to Calder’s work. Last month while in Los Angeles and at our old stomping grounds in Pasadena, Caltech (California Institute of Technology), we ran into Calder and his father, Alexander Stirling Calder.

The American sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder (1870 – 1945) carved the beautiful stone arches that today adorn a bridge between two laboratories at Caltech. The arches represent Nature, Art, Energy, Science, Imagination, and Law. They originally adorned a building called Throop Hall dedicated in 1910 on the present-day campus. Throop Hall was demolished after the 1971 San Fernando earthquake and the arches lay neglected for years until pressed back into use in 1986 in their current location. We snapped the photo above while walking around campus.

We ran into Alexander (Sandy) Calder (1898 – 1976) again at the Getty Center at the Lower Terrace Garden. The two pieces together are called The Jousters (1963). For an audio explanation click on The Jousters link in this audio tour.
Alexander Calder - The Jousters (1963)

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