Alexander Calder
ALEXANDER CALDER "OCTOPUS" 1975
Alexander Calder’s signature creation is the mobile. One of the most delightful examples of Modernist sculpture, Calder’s works are instantly recognizable in museums around the world.Â
Caviar20 has a particular interest in sculptors who are simultaneously active as printmakers - along with Alexander Calder, Richard Serra, Kosso Eloul, and Louise Nevelson are prime examples.
Like most sculptors who embraced printmaking as a parallel practice, Calder brought the same sense of balance, rhythm, and spontaneity to works on paper. A prolific printmaker, he developed a visual language distinguished by bold contours, saturated primary colours, and deceptively simple forms that convey remarkable energy and grace.
"Octopus" exemplifies this approach. Sweeping black lines intertwine with a vivid red organic form suggestive of curling tentacles, while a small blue oval provides a subtle point of balance. Hovering between abstraction and figuration, the composition captures Calder’s fascination with movement, nature, and the expressive potential of simple forms.Â
This lithograph was published in a suite of ten other works, for the 25th Anniversary of the National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee. Radiating with optimism and energy, "Octopus" is a compelling example of Calder's printmaking practice.
Calder's works can be found in numerous museum collections around the world including The Whitney Museum of American Art, the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina SofĂa in Madrid, to name a few.
Questions about this piece? Contact us, call +1.416.704.1720, or visit our Toronto Gallery.
"Octopus"
from Our Unfinished Revolution portfolio, a suite of ten lithographs
Color lithograph, 1975-76
Signed "Calder" in pencil, lower right
Numbered "111/175" in pencil, lower left and centreÂ
Printed at Atelier Mourlot, Paris
Published by Alba Editions, Inc., New York
30"HÂ 22"W (work)
37"H 29.25"W (framed)
Very good condition
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