Alexander Calder

Executed circa 1940. 

Atlantic Antic, Brooklyn
Christie's, New York, September 26, 2013, lot 107
Acquired from the above sale by the present owner

New York, Museum of Modern Art, Alexander Calder: Sculptures and Constructions, September 1943 - January 1944, cat. unpaginated, illustrated in an exhibition view

This work is in very good condition. There is evidence of some spots of indentation inherent to the artist's working method as well as the nature of the medium. There is evidence of minor wear to the surface.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This radiant necklace featuring handmade spirals and straight silver wiring elegantly combines Calder's use of geometrical abstraction with the representation of symbolic shapes, reminiscent of his mobile sculptures and gouaches.

The spirals are symbols of hypnosis but also of space, movement and the universality. The emphasis on line and geometrical shapes is visible in the final aesthetic and this was a main concern for  other modernist artists such as Jean Arp, Piet Mondrian and Wassily Kandinsky.

The raw aesthetic – the use of silver wire and cord - recalls the influence of primitivism and the bronze artefacts from the 'Golden Age' that Calder discovered in Paris. The appropriation of the iconographies from ancient cultures was a way for modernist artists to distance themselves from traditional Western art in order to find a new "purer" aesthetic. 

Alexander Calder made jewellery for his wife Louisa, his relatives and his friends such as Peggy Guggenheim, Simone de Beauvoir and Georgia O'Keeffe. It was a very personal practice in which he experienced a new aesthetic  with each piece  being equally rare and specific-, as such Calder's jewels are often regarded as highly as  his stabiles and mobiles. In  2013, a Necklace by the artist was sold for USD1,985,000 at Sotheby's New York on November 14 and still holds the world record price for a Calder piece of jewelry at auction.

This necklace was created in the early 1940s and was exhibited at his retrospective exhibition, held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1943. At the time Calder was the youngest artist to have ever had a retrospective held at MOMA, New York.