Modern Art Explorations
Stabile-Mobile Oshkosh
Alexander Calder, 1965, American
Kinetic Style
Inspired by forms floating in the universe, this sculpture simulates celestial movements. A larger form represents the sun, while two others symbolize the Earth and Moon, creating an allegory of a solar system.
Technical Elements
This free-standing sculpture is painted with wires and metal plates.
Formal Elements
The sculpture features a reduced color palette of black and dark metallic tones. Its dynamic, moving forms create a sense of circular motion. The stable, heavier base contrasts with increasingly slimmer wires and circular shapes rising upwards, giving a sense of lightness.
Later Influences
Calder’s engineering background influenced his artistic practice. He pioneered motion in sculpture (mobiles), a form of kinetic art. He explored real movement (caused by external forces) and virtual movement (perceived by the viewer). Calder’s friendship with Miró led to an exchange of influences, with Miró impacting Calder’s architectural and urban forms.
Placement and Significance
Calder’s stabile-mobiles adorn public spaces and buildings worldwide, including Brussels, Chicago, Mexico City, Venezuela, Montreal, and New York. These works were often commissioned for banks, parks, monuments, and other public areas.
Historical Context
Created in the 1960s, this work reflects the socio-economic and ideological shifts of the time, marked by the expansion of Surrealist ideas.
Tableau II
Piet Mondrian, 1921-1925
Neoplasticism Style
This oil on canvas painting emphasizes primary colors and non-colors (white and black). The brushstrokes are light and insignificant.
Technical Elements
The artwork utilizes oil paint on canvas, highlighting primary colors and non-colors (white and black). The brushstrokes are subtle and blend seamlessly with the composition.
Formal Elements
The composition is formed by colored areas, some larger than others, resembling a cross with arms extending from the upper left to lower right and lower left to upper right, intersecting at the center. The dynamic distribution of colors contributes to the artwork’s rhythm. This style is characteristic of Mondrian’s Neoplasticism.
Relationship to Art History
Neoplasticism emerged from a process of simplification and essentialism. Mondrian’s work evolved from Analytical Cubism to this distinct style, ultimately focusing on horizontal and vertical lines, primary colors, and non-colors. Similar trends can be observed in Soviet geometric abstraction movements like Suprematism and Constructivism. Mondrian interacted with and influenced Soviet artist Lissitzky.
Meaning and Function
Mondrian sought to liberate art from the artist’s perception and mood, rejecting sensory qualities to express the universal and absolute within reality. Neoplasticism extended beyond painting to architecture and industrial design.
Historical Context
Emerging in the mid-1920s, Neoplasticism coincided with the rise of various avant-garde movements. Mondrian’s theosophical beliefs, emphasizing universal harmony, are reflected in his works.
Subject Matter and Significance
The subject matter revolves around primary colors, color exploration, and the study of shapes and colors to reach their essence. Mondrian aimed to express the universal harmony he believed existed in the cosmos.