Alexander Calder

Alexander Calder was an inventive and prolific maker whose career spanned his adult life. Calder harboured a lifetime fascination for folk art and Indigenous manufacture. On a visit to Latin America in the 1940s, Calder and his wife Louisa encountered the tapestries of the region. A series of wall hangings at the home of New York collector and philanthropist, Catalina Kitty Meyer, inspired the artist anew.

Calder had previously collaborated with Meyer on an art auction to benefit victims of the 1973 Nicaraguan earthquake. Calder and Meyer then conceived a project to adapt his designs into soft sculptural hammocks and tapestries.

No one was prepared for the astonishing beauty and complexity that ensued. In particular, the Guatemalan artisans exploded Calder’s signature loops and swirls into fabulous surfaces of handdyed, curled and braided fibres.

Calder’s network of gallerists, collectors, curators and allies supported the project, offering pieces to clients and encouraging donations to universities under the Art for Education program. A 1975 gala at the New York Cultural Center under director Mario Amaya led to exhibitions at the Chrysler Museum and at venues across the United States. Editions of the tapestries found homes in museum, university, and private collections worldwide.