The Acrobats

1929

Alexander Calder

Associated Names
Alexander Calder

Artist, American, 1898 - 1976

The sculpture depicts two wire human figures interacting in a playful or acrobatic motion. One figure stands with an extended arm reaching up, while the other figure appears upside down, balancing on one hand with legs in the air. Crafted from dark-colored wire, the sculpture captures the delicate contours of the figures' posture and movement. It stands on a rectangular wooden base, providing contrast and stability. The base is light brown with visible wood grain texture. The wire figures have a two-dimensional appearance, inviting viewers to appreciate their form and dynamism from all angles.
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On View

East Building Tower Level, Gallery E606

Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Acquired 1929 from the artist through (Galerie Neumann-Nierendorf) by Dr. Hans Cürlis [1889-1982], Berlin, to 1967.[1] (Galerie Michael Hertz, Bremen, in 1967); sold 22 December 1967 to (Perls Galleries, New York); purchased February 1968 by Taft B. and Rita Bloch Schreiber, Beverly Hills;[2] by inheritance to Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg; gift 2025 to NGA.
[1] A filmmaker and art historian, Cürlis filmed Calder as he created The Acrobats in 1929 in conjunction with an exhibition of the artist's wire sculpture at the Galerie Neumann-Nierendorf in Berlin (Schaffende Hände: Drahtplastiken, 1929). The work remained with Cürlis along with a wire portrait of him also made by Calder. See entry by Cürlis in 1920-1970: Fünfzig Jahre Galerie Nierendorf. Rückblick, Dokumentation, Jubiläumsausstellung. Berlin, 1970: 31. Cürlis lent both works to a Calder retrospective at the Akademie der Künste, Berlin, in 1967.
[2] See invoices and correspondence about Perls's acquisition of the sculpture from Hertz and subsequent sale to Taft Schreiber in the Perls Galleries Records, 1937-1995, Archives of American Art, boxes 19 and 36, copies of relevant documents in NGA curatorial files.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1929

  • Ausstellung Alexander Calder Skulpturen aus Holz und aus Draht, Galerie Neumann-Nierendorf, Berlin, 1929, possibly no. 7, 13, or 23.

1967

  • Alexander Calder, Akademie der Künste, Berlin, 1967, no. 98, as Two Acrobats, repro.

  • Skulpturalen Inventionen vom Jahrhundertbeginn bis Heute, Galerie MIchael Hertz, Bremen, 1967, no. 15, as Two Acrobats, repro.

1968

  • 24 Major Acquisitions, Perls Galleries, New York, 1968, no. 5, repro.

Bibliography

1970

  • Galerie Nierendorf. _ 1920 -1970; fünfzig Jahre Galerie Nierendorf. Rückblick, Dokumentation, Jubiläumsausstellung._ Berlin, 1970: 31.

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