Archives - Calder

Alexander Calder operating Le Cirque during the Calder retrospective at the Maeght Foundation in 1969.

Alexander Calder in Saché in front of his mobile stables and the BMW that he painted for the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1975, with Hervé Poulain at the wheel, (here on the left) a great art lover, but also a gentleman driver.

Here's what Jean Todt says about it: "One of my auctioneer friends, Hervé Poulain, specialized in the sale of contemporary paintings, told me about the possibility of seeing Alexandre Calder paint a car to participate in the 24 hours of Le Mans. I found the idea fantastic. The problem was that he couldn't find a manufacturer who was sympathetic to this idea. And that's when I tried to convince a manufacturer. At the time I was a rally teammate - and I had convinced BMW to accept this challenge. BMW had loaned a car, a BM30CSL, which was painted by Calder. This car is now in the BMW museum in Munich, and every year this idea has been renewed, and there have been great painters like Lichtenstein, Frank Stella, César who for years painted a car which participated in the 24 hours of Le Mans, and today it is part of BMW's heritage."

Alexander Calder painting the portrait of James Johnson Sweeney in his studio La Gouacherie, Saché. James Johnson Sweeney is the man who made the heyday of modern art in New York, directing the MoMA from 1935 to 1946, then the Guggenheim from 1950 to 1962, organizing exhibitions which still remain as references in the the history of art.

Today, his grandson, Manus, has opened a gallery in Bordeaux. We worked together for many years, it was always a pleasure as he is charming, cultured and often very, very funny!

Alexander Calder and Joan Miro in the Miró Labyrinth, with L'Oiseau Lunanaire, Fondation Maeght, in Saint Paul-de-Vence.

Alexander Calder and Joan Miró at the opening of the Calder retrospective at the Maeght Foundation, 1969.