ALEXANDER CALDER | Pentagon

Estate of the artist
The Pace Gallery, New York (acquired from the above)
Private Collection, New York (acquired from the above in 1989)
Sotheby's, New York, 16 May 2001, Lot 228
Acquired from the above sale by the present owner 

New York, The Pace Gallery, Calder: Stabiles, May - June 1989

This work is in very good and sound condition overall. There is evidence of wear and handling to the edges including scattered losses along the edges. There is a white scratch along the edge of the blue leg underneath the artist's monogram. Under very close inspection, there is minor evidence of craquelure and associated small losses at both junctures where the yellow and blue legs meet the top form.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

“At heart, Calder has always been an engineer. He has clothed the forces of his engineering with his joyful imagination and his lithe sense of beauty. But the wellspring of his art remains the thrusts, the tensions, the stress loads, the balances, the forces of gravity which he, the engineer, proceeds to adjust and join.”
Robert Osborn in Exh. Cat., New York, Whitney Museum of American Art (and traveling), Calder's Universe, 1977, pp. 306-307

This work is registered in the archives of the Calder Foundation, New York, under application number A02090.