''Lobster Trap and Fish Tail'', a

mobile Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ( ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

artist

Alexander Calder Alexander Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, his static "stabiles", and his ...

, is located at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

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New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

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. It is one of Calder's earliest hanging mobiles and "the first to reveal the basic characteristics of the genre that launched his enormous international reputation and popularity."Lipman, Jean; Franc, Helen Margaret (1976). ''Bright stars: American painting and sculpture since 1776.'' Dutton,

History

The sculpture was commissioned by the Advisory Committee for the stairwell of the museum when the new building opened in 1939.Morgan, Ann Lee (2007). ''The Oxford dictionary of American art and artists, '' p. 73. Oxford University Press US, Fabricated in

Roxbury, Connecticut Roxbury is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 2,260 at the 2020 census. The town is located northeast of New York City. History Roxbury, whose Native name was ''Shepaug'', a Mahican word signifying "roc ...

, the painted steel wire and sheet aluminum sculpture is 8' 6" (260 cm) x 9' 6" (290 cm) in diameter. The sculpture suggests the movement of underwater life.Moyle, Peter B.; Moyle, Marilyn A. (1992). Fish imagery in art 28: Calder's ''Lobster Trap and Fish Tail''. ''Environmental Biology of Fishes'', Volume 35, Number 2, 204 Calder became a leading exponent of kinetic art, combining his engineering training with his studies of art in New York and Paris. According to a review in the ''

New York Sun ''The New York Sun'' is an American online newspaper published in Manhattan; from 2002 to 2008 it was a daily newspaper distributed in New York City. It debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of the earlier New York ...

'', "There, he became enthralled with the

biomorphic Biomorphism models artistic design elements on naturally occurring patterns or shapes reminiscent of nature and living organisms. Taken to its extreme it attempts to force naturally occurring shapes onto functional devices. History Within the c ...

surrealism Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

Joan Miró Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , , ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan painter, sculptor and ceramicist born in Barcelona. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona i ...

as well as the powerful

choreography Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design ...

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which included dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th ...

pioneer

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Her style, the Graham technique, reshaped American dance and is still taught worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over seventy years. She wa ...

."Finkelstein, Allix (September 28, 2007)
Intimate at MoMA.
''

'' After experimenting with motorized sculptures, Calder began creating works that moved and floated when touched or exposed to air currents. Calder composed motion with works like ''Lobster Trap and Fish Tail'', "harnessing the performative potential of the mechanical sciences."

References

External links

''Lobster Trap and Fish Tail''
via

{{Alexander Calder Sculptures by Alexander Calder Animals in art 1939 sculptures Aluminum sculptures in New York City Steel sculptures in New York City

History

See also

References

External links