Alexander Calder at the Whitney

The Alexander Calder show recently opened at the Whitney Museum in NYC. The exhibition focuses on his years in Paris from 1926-1933. The amount of work that he produced, along with his stylistic and artistic growth, in those 7 years is remarkable. Starting with academic studies in drawing and painting, he frequented cafes on the boulevards of Montparnasse, meeting contemporaries of his like Mondrian, Leger, Miro, and Duchamp. By growing through and experiencing "Les Annees Folle" in Paris, Calder's artwork changed drastically. You can see this great change in the show, although it does seem rather abrupt; his early paintings are in the same room as his wire sculptures of Josephine Baker. Indeed, the layout of the show isn't the best; the 4th floor of the Whitney doesn't exactly flow too fluidly. But, regardless of the space, the show is put on very well (they even have some of his childhood drawings), and the work is amazing, funny, and entertaining. Getting off the elevator, you're greeted with remarkable wire-sculpture portraits that read perfectly from any angle and the execution of which will boggle the mind. You'll spend a long time in the room housing his Circus, laughing at the hilarious short film of the show and viewing all his clever toys and great line-drawings. Don't miss his "mobile" room, especially when the Whitney employee comes to "wind up" a couple of them. His sculptures at the end of the space are not only great, they're really funny too. You'll also have the pleasure of watching a short film of Calder performing his circus himself. It's obvious through this exhibition that Calder was a very clever artist, wanting really to just have a lot of fun in the process as well as content of his work. You'll be hard-pressed to find someone leaving the show without a smile on their face.

For more info on the show, check out the site.