Pyramids and Worlds 1970

"Pyramids and Worlds" by Alexander Calder, done in 1970 – it's this playful scene of geometric shapes rendered in bold colors. I imagine Calder, already famous for his mobiles, still curious, still experimenting. What's great about this image is it’s less about the pyramids or the worlds themselves, and more about the act of arranging them. The pyramids, some solid color, others outlined, feel like thoughts being worked out in real time. The orange sphere, the striped one—are they suns, planets, or just shapes floating in space? The black outlines give a crispness, but there’s also a handmade quality, a looseness that invites you in. It reminds me that painting is, at its heart, a conversation, a back-and-forth between the artist and the canvas. Calder is in conversation with everyone, from the cubists and surrealists to the next generation of artists who dare to play with form and color. It's about keeping the dialogue going, inspiring each other across time.