Alexander Calder
1898 – 1976 | American

Rouille sur journe
(Rust on day)

Gouache and ink on paper
Signed and dated “Calder 64” (lower right)

This vibrant gouache and ink on paper is the work of modernist master, Alexander Calder. Calder was widely innovative across a multitude of artistic mediums, not only in his revolutionary sculptural mobiles, but also in paint. His rare painted works offer an intriguing glimpse into this renowned artist’s conception of spatial planes and color theory. In this piece, Calder beautifully illustrates his preoccupation with both geometric shapes and dynamic movement.

Painted by Calder in 1964, this important work embodies the well-loved exuberant spirit of his oeuvre. Best known for introducing a new idiom into the modern narrative – sculptural mobiles – Calder’s painted works also reflect his groundbreaking new perceptions of line and space. The present piece is an exceptional example, impressive in its large size, vivid color and compelling composition. With geometric components that seem to float within the canvas, this remarkable work boasts the same graceful whimsy of Calder’s hanging sculptural mobiles.

Extraordinarily important in terms of both its medium and artistic style, this work also betrays the significant influence of Joan Miró on Calder’s artistic development. These two 20th-century greats met in Paris in the 1920s, forming an artistic bond that would influence both artists throughout their entire careers. The artists, together, were integral to constructing a new avant-garde vernacular that shifted away from figural modes of representation towards a more illusory, abstract style derived from nature and the imagination.

Today, Calder’s remarkable works can be found in public and private collections worldwide, including the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, Museum of Modern Art in New York, Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, and National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Important public commissions by the artist can also be seen in cities throughout the world, and his remarkable oeuvre has been the subject of hundreds of museum exhibitions. Similar paintings by Calder can be found in important museum collections, such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim in New York.

This painting is registered under number A11297 in the archives of the Calder Foundation, New York.

Dated 1964