Rouge feu 1974

Alexander Calder made this painting, Rouge feu, with ink on paper. I like the black spiral, it feels like it is sucking me in. But at the same time, it seems to be pushing against the red color block like it’s trying to escape, get away, pushing and straining at the edge of the paper. What do you think Calder was thinking about when he made this? Was he thinking about motion, or just trying to see what would happen when he placed these shapes together? It’s such a simple painting, but it has so much energy. The red is fire, raw emotion, and it is contained, held down by the white of the paper. I can imagine Calder playing with these shapes, testing them out. Almost like he's thinking about the way his sculptures move in space. This work reminds me of other artists who play with flat color, and how placing one color next to another creates another space or feeling. What do you feel when you look at this painting?