Untitled 1935

Curator: Before us, we have an "Untitled" mobile by Alexander Calder, created in 1935. The artwork, residing here at the Guggenheim, uses painted metal to engage with space. It is suspended so each element is perfectly balanced. Editor: It’s just... delightful. It looks like little planets caught in a gentle dance. So simple, yet so playful, and honestly, a bit whimsical. You almost want to give it a nudge and set it spinning. Curator: Its kinetic qualities and geometric shapes place it within the constructivist tradition, where form and function merge to question hierarchies of space and power through an egalitarian redistribution of matter and gravity. How do you see it reflecting the socio-political landscape of the 1930s? Editor: I feel its impact is more deeply philosophical. To me it’s less about the dust bowl and more about physics. I look at it, and think: precariousness, equilibrium and relative scale. Do the spheres suggest ideas of privilege vs. vulnerability or something like that? Sure, why not? Curator: Absolutely. I think your response illuminates that its beauty relies not only on how it aesthetically embodies ideas surrounding the intersectional relationship between space, matter and time, but more literally relies on actual physical laws governing gravity to achieve equilibrium. The precarious balance reminds us of our reliance on governing social structures, which have material impact, yet whose stability often seems ephemeral. Editor: Well put. I do also think of it like this – the beauty isn’t just visual, it’s felt. It connects directly with our most innate desires of stability, but by denying this it hints at change. Curator: A prescient insight, considering the turmoil that marked that decade. Ultimately the work’s abstract nature invites varied interpretations, which makes engaging with it continually enriching. Editor: Precisely. I keep coming back to it - and the little planets keep revolving in my imagination, full of potential meanings. What a wonder!