Arp, Mirό, Calder

Presenting a comprehensive array of fifty works in all media by Jean Arp (French, born Germany, 1886-1966), Joan Mirὀ (Spanish, 1893-1983), and Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976), this exhibition highlights the Albright-Knox Art Gallery’s (New York) extensive collection of the work of these three modern masters, who pushed color, line, and form beyond convention.  Arp, Mirὀ, and Calder converged early in their artistic careers.  Calder, who left New York for France in 1926, first encountered Arp and Mirὀ in Paris, an inspirational destination for artists and a vibrant center of music and dance that was also the creative center for Surrealism and Surrealist theory.  Calder, though not closely associated with Surrealism, was undoubtedly influenced by the movement’s key contributors during his time in Paris.  It was Arp, in fact, who named Calder’s static constructions “stabiles,” and, in 1931, the Surrealist Marcel Duchamp suggested that Calder call his whimsical, kinetic works “mobiles.”  Calder, however, developed the closest friendship with Mirὀ; the two bonded over discussions about Surrealist theory and through their shared interested and influences.  These relationships, formed during a period in art history often referred to as “the greatest laboratory of modern art,” resulted in some of the most innovative visual iconographies of the twentieth century.

This exhibition is organized by the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York. Support for its Collection-based exhibition program is generously provided by the late Peggy Pierce Elfvin; The Seymour H. Knox Foundation, Inc.; The John R. Oishei Foundation; and The Margaret L. Wendt Foundation.

The Boise Art Museum’s presentation has been made possible by sponsorship from the Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation
with additional support from the Robert Lehman Foundation.