Monday, March 16, 2009

Alexander Calder: Balance Artist

"Enseign de Lunettes"
This piece by Alexander Calder clearly illustrates assymetrical balance. Not only is the work itself a mobil, and thus its mass is physically balanced over its off-center fulcrum, it is also conceptually/visually balanced, with the constant and regular shaped circles balancing agaisnt the irregular and jagged shapes on the viewer's right. The vertical arrangement, however, is not perfectly balanced across a horizontal horizon line, thus drawing attention to the weight of those larger, jagged-edged objects and producing some tension. 

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