ALEXANDER CALDER American, 1898-1976
Seahorse, 1962
Signed and Dated Gouache and Ink on BFK Rives Wove Paper
73.6 x 104 cm. / 29 x 40.9 in.
This is a gouache by Alexander Calder.
It is signed and dated "Calder 62" at the centre right of the image.
It was painted in 1962.
The paper bears the BFK Rives watermark.
Note:
One of the smallest creatures of the sea, the seahorse was an emblematic motif for Calder. The significance of which can be traced to the early 20th century fascination with these mythical looking animals. This fascination was established by the cutting edge cinematography of Jean Painlevé, who captured underwater footage of their behaviour. The filmmaker was close friend of Calder and even recorded on film one of Calder’s “Circus” performances.
Aside from the fashion for seahorses across all elements of design, from jewellery to art – the principles of the spiral, or swirl endeared this creature to Calder’s heart. It featured heavily in his works on paper and in his lithography as a strong motif of the sea. Its movement appearing to be effortless, as captured so incredulously in scenes from Painlevé’s 1934 masterpiece “L’Hippocampe ou Cheval Marin”. The artist and filmmaker met at the home of Augustin Hamon, who encouraged revolutionary artists and scientists to mix freely and debate radical ideas.
Provenance:
Nicolas Guppy, London
BAWAG PSK Bank, Austria
This work is registered in the archive of the Calder Foundation with the application number A14122.
Condition: Very good condition. A 12 mm. tear at the left sheet edge. Minor nicks along the upper sheet edge. Minor areas of creasing in the lower left and upper right corners. Pale, unobtrusive foxing in the upper right corner.
It is signed and dated "Calder 62" at the centre right of the image.
It was painted in 1962.
The paper bears the BFK Rives watermark.
Note:
One of the smallest creatures of the sea, the seahorse was an emblematic motif for Calder. The significance of which can be traced to the early 20th century fascination with these mythical looking animals. This fascination was established by the cutting edge cinematography of Jean Painlevé, who captured underwater footage of their behaviour. The filmmaker was close friend of Calder and even recorded on film one of Calder’s “Circus” performances.
Aside from the fashion for seahorses across all elements of design, from jewellery to art – the principles of the spiral, or swirl endeared this creature to Calder’s heart. It featured heavily in his works on paper and in his lithography as a strong motif of the sea. Its movement appearing to be effortless, as captured so incredulously in scenes from Painlevé’s 1934 masterpiece “L’Hippocampe ou Cheval Marin”. The artist and filmmaker met at the home of Augustin Hamon, who encouraged revolutionary artists and scientists to mix freely and debate radical ideas.
Provenance:
Nicolas Guppy, London
BAWAG PSK Bank, Austria
This work is registered in the archive of the Calder Foundation with the application number A14122.
Condition: Very good condition. A 12 mm. tear at the left sheet edge. Minor nicks along the upper sheet edge. Minor areas of creasing in the lower left and upper right corners. Pale, unobtrusive foxing in the upper right corner.
$ 100,000.00
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