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Calder mobile

Palm Beach Modern to auction Calder mobile sculpture Oct. 10

Catherine Saunders-Watson
Catherine Saunders-Watson
Calder mobile
Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976), sculptural mobile, 1972, artist-signed, 32.5 x 34.5 x 18.5in. Painted sheet metal, wire. Estimate $850,000-$950,000

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The incomparable American artist Alexander Calder (1898-1976) once said, “When everything goes right, a mobile is a piece of poetry that dances with the joy of life…” If that is the case, everything must have gone right on the day in 1972 that Calder completed and signed this extraordinary painted sheet metal and wire creation, untitled but known as “Demi-Cone.” It is the headliner in Palm Beach Modern’s Saturday, October 10 Modern Art & Design Auction, with absentee and Internet live bidding available through LiveAuctioneers. The pre-sale estimate is $850,000-$950,000.

Calder mobile
Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976), sculptural mobile, 1972, artist-signed, 32.5 x 34.5 x 18.5in. Painted sheet metal, wire. Estimate $850,000-$950,000

As would be the case with any artwork in such an elevated league, the Calder comes with impeccable provenance. It is registered in the archives of the Calder Foundation in New York, under application number A12031. is registered in the archives of the Calder Foundation, New York, under application number A12031. Its prior exhibitions include: Humlebaek, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Alexander Calder: Retrospective, October 1995-January 1996, no. 107;  Moderna Museet Stockholm, Alexander Calder (1898-1976), March-May 1996; Musee d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Alexander Calder: 1898-1976, July-October 1996, no. 143, p. 147 (illustrated in color); and in New York at the James Goodman Gallery, Calder: Space and Play, October-December 2014. Its line of ownership includes a private New York City collection; Pace Gallery, New York (2012, acquired by present owner); and Russeck Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida.

For additional information, call Palm Beach Modern Auctions at 561-586-5500 or email info@modernauctions.com.

Bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers.

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