THE ARCH 1975

Curator: Alexander Calder’s imposing sculpture, “The Arch,” created in 1975, stands before us. Its monumental presence immediately grabs your attention. Editor: It feels both incredibly grounded and yet like it could take flight any moment. You know, there's a real sense of tension in how it holds itself. Curator: Calder worked extensively with metal, and here you see the bolted seams. Site-specific sculptures like this really change our understanding of the artist’s intentions, which shifted away from creating mobile works that he was originally known for. How the manufacturing of industrial material transformed space in post-war landscapes became the focus. Editor: Absolutely, I think of its stark black color contrasting against the blue sky, but then I wonder if maybe the form imitates a dark cloud ready to burst? I find myself making up narratives around it. Curator: Consider the material transformation at play: Steel, often associated with industry and production, becomes an artistic medium capable of evoking movement and lightness. The engineering and construction methods behind its realization are also worth pondering; labor practices, factory locations, the very physical effort involved are embedded in the metal. Editor: In my mind, though, it defies gravity like Calder's other pieces. When you stand beneath it, there's this illusion of defiance—of this huge metal thing wanting to take off like a child's mobile! Maybe that tension comes from the paradox of material and perceived weightlessness. Curator: Calder’s earlier work very much centered on the creation of work that actively explored industrial society as part of his social context, and later in life moved into monumental sculptures, in public spaces. Editor: I will not stop associating it with some great mechanical bird, preening or taking flight, the lines almost dance despite their weight, even. Curator: It’s fascinating to view the tension that runs within this work. A product of industry, a symbol, perhaps of social order, but an object that challenges convention, too. Editor: I leave seeing "The Arch" as a monument to creative freedom—steel made dreamlike and ethereal.