Synopses & Reviews
This study, now published in paperback, provides the most complete scholarly account yet published of the life and work of Alexander Calder. The son and grandson of acclaimed public sculptors, Calder was trained as an engineer. Working in Europe during the 1920s, he was exposed to a range of avant-garde art, including Cubism, Dada and Surrealism, Constructivism, and works created at the Bauhaus. These sources, together with Calder's abiding interest in American folk art, were fundamental to the evolution of his wood and wire sculptures, which fundamentally challenged the principles of Western sculpture established in antiquity. Calder's creation of the mobile and stabile, two forms of sculpture that are synonymous with modernism, is also analysed in detail. Including a new plate section and 170 halftones, many published here for the first time, Marter's book is an absorbing study of Calder's special contribution to twentieth-century art and culture.
Review
"Involved with Calder studies for more than 20 years and treating the artist with the seriousness which he has not been accorded heretofore, Marter has given us the best study of Calder's art to date and one that should serve as a model for all future Calder studies....highly recommended for all collections on modern art." Choice"A text that for once does not trivialize Calder....It represents a new and welcome approach that stresses the mathematical, mechanical, and conceptual elements of the work, with attention to large-scale public sculptures." Wilson Library Bulletin"...it is very hard not to grab your telescope and rush outside to search the skies after reading this book..." New Scientist"...reveals with clarity Calder's place among the abstract painters of the 1920s...." Journal of American History"...a useful guide to Calder's place within international modernism....opens so many valuable areas for consideration...." Art Journal
Synopsis
This study provides the most complete scholarly account yet published of the life and work of Alexander Calder, one of the most important artists of the modern era. Working in Europe during the 1920s, he was exposed to a range of avant-garde art which, with his abiding interest in American folk art, was fundamental to the evolution of his influential wood and wire sculptures. Including eight colour plates and 170 halftones, many published here for the first time, Marter's book is an absorbing study of Calder's special contribution to twentieth-century art and culture.
Synopsis
This study provides the most complete scholarly account yet published of the life and work of Alexander Calder, one of the most important artists of the modern era. Working in Europe during the 1920s, he was exposed to a range of avant-garde art which, with his abiding interest in American folk art, was fundamental to the evolution of his influential wood and wire sculptures. Including eight colour plates and 170 halftones, many published here for the first time, Marter's book is an absorbing study of Calder's special contribution to twentieth-century art and culture.
Synopsis
A study of Alexander Calder, whose work fundamentally challenged the principles of Western sculpture.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 291-298) and index.
Table of Contents
List of illustrations; Acknowledgments; Introduction; 1. Formative years: early drawings and paintings; 2. First years in Paris: wood and wire sculptures, 1926-1930; 3. The birth of abstract style; 4. Calder as choreographer, 1936-1942; 5. Calder as a public artist: 1940s and 1950s; 6. Late years: monumental works; Notes; List of solo exhibitions; Selected bibliography; Index.