During his lifetime, Calder created 1,800 pieces of jewelry, most between 1933 and 1952. Many were made for family members or friends and given away on special occasions. This necklace was made by hammering brass wire into flat strips and then fashioning them into a decorative linear design that relates directly to his early wire portraits.
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Inscription: Stylized "C" on exterior of back, proper right side.
[Perls Galleries, New York, until 1968; inv. no. J235; sold on May 23, 1968 to Newman]; Muriel Kallis Newman, Chicago (1968–2006; her gift to MMA)
New York. Whitney Museum of American Art. "Calder's Universe," October 14, 1976–February 6, 1977, unnumbered cat. (p. 211; dated ca. 1940, lent by Muriel Kallis Newman, Chicago).
Atlanta. High Museum of Art. "Calder's Universe," March 5–May 1, 1977, unnumbered cat.
Minneapolis. Walker Art Center. "Calder's Universe," June 5–August 14, 1977, unnumbered cat.
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts. "Calder's Universe," September 14–October 20, 1977, unnumbered cat.
West Palm Beach. Norton Museum of Art. "Calder Jewelry," February 23–June 15, 2008, nos. 172–76.
Philadelphia Museum of Art. "Calder Jewelry," July 12–October 19, 2008, nos. 172–76.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Calder Jewelry," December 8, 2008–March 1, 2009, nos. 172–76.
Dublin. Irish Museum of Modern Art. "Calder Jewelry," March 31–June 22, 2009, nos. 172–76.
San Diego Museum of Art. "Calder Jewelry," July 18, 2009–January 4, 2010, nos. 172–76.
Grand Rapids Art Museum. "Calder Jewelry," January 29–April 18, 2010, nos. 172–76.
Barcelona. Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC). "Joyas de artista. Del modernismo a la vanguardia," October 27, 2010–February 13, 2011, no. 295.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Highlights from the Modern Design Collection: 1900–Present, Part II," May 23, 2011–July 1, 2012, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Jewelry: The Body Transformed," November 12, 2018–February 24, 2019, unnumbered cat. (pl. 166).
Hilton Kramer. "Fashion and Design: Toys, Trivets, and Serving Trays." New York Times Magazine (October 17, 1976), p. 76, ill. front cover (color, as worn by Anjelica Huston).
Karen Rosenberg. "Calder's Precious Metals: Who Needs Diamonds." New York Times (December 12, 2008), p. C33.
Toni Greenbaum. "Livewire: The Fantastical Jewelry of Alexander Calder." Metalsmith 28, no. 5 (2008), ill. p. 30 (color, as worn by Anjelica Huston, 1976).
Christine Temin. "Calder Jewelry." American Craft 68 (June/July 2008), pp. 52–53, ill. (color, as worn by Anjelica Huston, 1976).
Soyoung Lee inJewelry: The Body Transformed. Ed. Melanie Holcomb. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 2018, pp. 169, 190, 269, fig. 35 (color, worn by Anjelica Huston, 1976), colorpl. 166 and ill. frontispiece (color).
Victoria Gomelsky. "On Display: Objects That Shimmer and Shape Us." New York Times (December 21, 2018), ill. p. C19.
Alexander Calder (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1898–1976 New York)
1959
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