Art Masterpiece: Cow,* Alexander Calder - Chandler Unified School District

Art Masterpiece: Cow,* Alexander Calder Keywords: Sculpture, three dimensional (3-D), and line Grade(s): 5th – 6th Activity: Wire animal sculpture *Other animal sculptures of Alexander Calder’s can be used in place of “Cow.” About the Artist Alexander Calder was born on July 22, 1898 in Lawton, Pennsylvania. He was called Sandy by his friends who always remembered him as laughing, joking or giggling. His father and grandfather were sculptors, and his mother was an accomplished painter. Despite his artistic background, Calder was not interested in art as a young boy. But as a young child, he did like to collect gadgets and scraps of many things and make toys out of them. For Christmas in 1909, Calder presented his parents with two of his first sculptures, a tiny dog and duck cut from a brass sheet and bent into formation. The duck is kinetic, it rocks back and forth when tapped. Even at age eleven, his facility in handling materials was apparent. Calder did not set out to become an artist. He excelled in math, graduated college with a degree in mechanical engineering and worked various jobs. In 1926, Calder moved to Paris and made friends with many famous artists. While he was there, Calder made toy-like wire and wood sculptures that he developed into a miniature circus collection. Calder did circus Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

performances with his figures and became well known throughout the world because of them. Calder liked to draw pictures using one continuous line. He then began using wire in one continuous line, like today’s project does. One day after visiting Piet Mondrian’s studios, Calder was inspired to make his first movable sculpture. This was a significant turning point in Calder's artistic career. He created the first truly kinetic sculpture and gave form to an entirely new type of art. The first of these objects that moved were dubbed ‘mobiles’ by artist Marcel Duchamp, and artist Jean Arp named Calder's stationary objects ‘stabiles’.” If you have a baby brother or sister, they may have a mobile of brightly colored animals hanging above their crib. Calder made many of his mobiles small and simple with simple tools. He always carried a few small tools with him when he traveled so he could set up a workshop anywhere. In contrast though, many of his mobiles are VERY large. Calder married Louisa James in 1931 and had two daughters. In 1933, Alexander and Louisa Calder purchased an old farmhouse in Roxbury, Connecticut. He converted an icehouse attached to the main house into a studio for himself. His mobiles are the American sculpture most admired all over the world. Possible Questions: o What is this sculpture made from? (Metal wire.) o Is “Cow” a good title for this sculpture? What other sorts of names could it have? o What about a mobile? Have you ever seen one? (A baby’s crib mobile?) o Could “Cow” be made into a mobile? What sort of things would you have to do to make “Cow” into a mobile? (It would have to hang somehow – more wire? Hooks?) o Is this sculpture realistic? In what ways? How is it abstract? (It looks just like a cow so you don’t have to guess what you are seeing. But it is not “solid” – more like a line drawing or cartoon drawing.) o How would you describe “Cow” to someone who hasn’t seen it? Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

Optional Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v ovC9 LDnK1o (4:15 min) Definitions: Sculpture - carving, model or other three-dimensional piece of art. Three-Dimensional (3-D) - artwork that can be measured three ways, height, width and depth. All sculptures are 3-D; most paintings and drawings are 2-D (flat.) Line – an element of art; a continuous path of a point as it moves across a surface. A line can vary in length, width, direction, curvature or color. Activity: Wire Animal Sculpture Materials Needed: Colored Twisteez wire (24 gauge), 2 lengths of 30” per student Squares (or rectangles) of cardboard or cardstock, one per student. Scissors, one per student Low temp glue guns, two or three –OR- staplers, two or three glue sticks (or staples) gloves (optional, if using glue guns) Extension cord with multi openings (optional, if using glue guns) Process: Show the students how the wires can easily be bent, twisted round and round, curled around a pencil, or even left straight. They may cut the wires if they wish to – regular scissors will cut through one piece of wire at a time – but discourage them from cutting the wires into lots of small pieces. Explain to the students that their sculpture will be glued (or stapled) to a base when they are finished so their sculpture will need at least one part of the wire left flat enough to be glued to the base. (See example photos at the end of the lesson.) GLUE GUNS SHOULD BE USED BY ADULTS ONLY. Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

1. Hand out 2 pieces of wire, 30” each and scissors. Tell students that if they want a different colors (other than the two colors they were given) that they can trade one another. 2. Hand out cardboard (or cardstock) and ask the students to write their name on the square. 3. Encourage them to make a recognizable object like Calder did; a cow, leopard, elephant, horse, bird, fish or even a car, plane, bike, robot, umbrella, etc. They may even want to try making a face of a person (a portrait). They can look at their neighbor for inspiration. 4. When they are finished with their sculpture, have them bring their sculpture to the place where the glue gun(s) are plugged in. Carefully glue their sculpture to the cardboard “base” and allow the glue to cool. Alternately, you can often use a stapler to attach the sculpture to the base. (See example photos at the end of the lesson.) Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

Examples: (Hot glue gun used to secure “feet.”) (Staples used to secure the bird to the cardstock.) Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

Parent Note: Alexander “Sandy” Calder (1898 – 1976) was an American sculptor known as the originator of the mobile, a type of kinetic sculpture made with delicately balanced or suspended components. Calder is also known for his numerous wire sculptures as well as mechanical metal animals he made for a miniature circus. In Art Masterpiece your child made a wire animal in the style of Alexander Calder. “Cow” by Alexander Calder. Alexander “Sandy” Calder (1898 – 1976) was an American sculptor known as the originator of the mobile, a type of kinetic sculpture made with delicately balanced or suspended components. Calder is also known for his numerous wire sculptures as well as mechanical metal animals he made for a miniature circus. In Art Masterpiece your child made a wire animal in the style of Alexander Calder. “Cow” by Alexander Calder. Chandler Unified School District Art Masterpiece Program, Chandler, Arizona, USA

Alexander "Sandy" Calder (1898 - 1976) was an American sculptor known as the originator of the mobile, a type of kinetic sculpture made with delicately balanced or suspended components. Calder is also known for his numerous wire sculptures as well as mechanical metal animals he made for a miniature circus. In Art Masterpiece your child .