| Philadelphia, PA, 22 July 1898 - New York, 11 Nov 1976 Sculptor, painter, illustrator, printmaker and designer, son of sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder, and best known as a pioneer of KINETIC ART. Trained at the Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, he graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1919. In 1923, Calder began studying at the Art Students League in New York, where he was inspired by his teacher, John Sloan and began creating oil paintings. He became a freelance artist for the National Police Gazette in 1924, sketching sporting events and circus performances. His first illustrated book, Animal Sketching (New York, 1926), was based on studies made at the Bronx and Central Park Zoos in New York. In the early 1930s, Calder joined the ABSTRACTION CREATION group and soon produced his first abstract moving sculpture. He is best known for his large-scale public installations, both mobiles and stabiles, such as RED, BLACK, AND BLUE at the Dallas Airport. |
