The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of August 14, 2022

The Centaurs

1955 or before

Alexander Calder

(American, 1898-1976)

America, 20th century

Pen and black ink

Support: Cream(1) wove paper (Strathmore Artist)

Sheet: 36.8 x 29.2 cm (14 1/2 x 11 1/2 in.)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Robert M. Levine 1970.356

© Estate of Alexander Calder / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Location

not on view

Description

Calder began to experiment with wire in 1925. His comment, "I think best in wire," is exemplified by the numerous witty and delightful forms he fashioned from a material overlooked by previous sculptors. In a sense these whimsical linear constructions of figures, animals, and objects are three-dimensional drawings and so it is not surprising that they reflect the precision, clarity, and elegance of the artist's draftsmanship.

Inscriptions

Inscription

signed, lower right, in black ink: "A Calder"

Inscription

On verso, upper left, in graphite: "5"

Provenance
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Levine, Cleveland Heights, OH
December 18, 1970
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Lee, Sherman E. "The Year in Review for 1971." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 59, no. 1 (1972) p. 42, no. 66 www.jstor.org
Exhibition history

Cleveland Museum of Art, 1995-1996: Changing Dimensions: Works on Paper by Sculptors: November 22, 1995-January 24, 1996, no cat.

Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; 4/19/98 - 7/12/98. "American Drawings from the Permanent Collection."

Year in Review: 1971. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (December 28, 1971-February 6, 1972).

Graphic Humor. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 1-August 29, 1982).

Images of the Mind. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 7-August 30, 1987).

Changing Dimensions: Works on Paper by Sculptors. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 22, 1995-January 24, 1996).

American Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (April 19-July 12, 1998).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1970.356