#calder's circus

[paulfc]

Clothespin Automata at the Gym: Sit ups

Looking at simple automata and the idea of Clothespin Automata at the Gym appeals to me, not exactly Calder's Circus but entertaining to make.  I may have to make a diorama to put them in, socially distanced of course, all that panting and sweat, got to be a contagion hazard.

Mixed media paper wire and spring clothespin

[paulfc]

Walking a tight rope!

There are things which are self evident, and some things which are less so and result in a need to consider how for example that which is biologically equivalent e.g, every human on the planet, may not be regarded as so in social terms i.e. racism.  

So here we have a tight rope walker treading the thin line of dichotomy between good deeds and bad deeds, paying the penalty for not knowing the past and biology vs sociology. 

 Wire sculpture after Calder's Circus, mixed media paper and galvanised wire.

Yes I know biological equivalence is self-evident, but sometimes the Department of the Bleeding Obvious doesn’t get its policies across very well. 

[paulfc]

And all without the benefit of a safety net!

wire frame automaton, dimensions 30 x 25 x 30 cms (variable)

“Ladies and Gentlemen direct from a tour of Rome and Milan we present the famous hire-wire walker Signor Centro di Gravità who will perform his feats of derring-do and all without the benefit of a safety net.”

Part three, tribute to Alexander Calder's Circus, this is a high-wire walker, the centre of gravity of the model is below the high wire and so he balances and given an adequate slope to the wire slides rather than walks down it. The current slope is such that he slides a little and sticks a little.

[paulfc]

Hoop Fido, hoop!

wire frame automaton, dimensions 20 x 14 x 10 cms.

Part two of my homage to Alexander Calder's “Circus” the stick man has trained his stick dog to jump through hoops.  

This is of course a metaphor for the human state and incidentally a fine example of artistic post event justification (Art bollocks) for a piece that was made, as is the majority of my work, for the shear delight of making.

[blushingcheekymonkey]

alexander calder - calder’s circus, lion and cage (1926-31)

[eksgnfr]

Alexander Calder - Calder's Circus

[rudygodinez]

Alexander Calder in His Studio 

(top) Marc Vaux, "Calder's Studio on the Rue de la Colonie", Paris, (1931)

(bottom) Andre Kertesz, "Alexander Calder" (2), Paris, (1929)

[acapareda]

Alexander Calder- Calder's Circus (1931)

Calder enrolled at the Art Students League in New York and also took a job illustrating for the National Police Gazette. The magazine sent him to sketch scenes from the local circus for two weeks, and so began a lifelong interest. In 1926 he moved to Paris and created his Cirque Calder, a sort of travelling circus set made from cloth, leather, wire and found materials. The pieces represented circus performers which were designed to be manipulated manually by Calder. Soon he was presenting his Cirque Calder in both Paris and New York to much acclaim. The performance lasted two hours and in many ways predated performance art by 40 years. Cirque Calder is now part of the permanent collection of the Whitney Museum in New York, but a live performance carried out by the artist in later years can be seen on youtube.com.

Link to the video: http://youtu.be/t6jwnu8Izy0