Alexander Calder Sculpture
Calder Appraisal Value
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Alexander Calder
Sculpture
Since I study patterns of collecting for post-World War II American sculpture, I
was not surprised to see that a Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976) maquette
(small-scale model) showed up in the sculptor’s native city of
Philadelphia, PA during a PBS Antiques Roadshow episode in 2007. Calder produced many maquettes throughout his
career and this one supposedly was produced for a large-scale sculpture
commissioned for the 1958 Brussels Worlds Fair. In public and private collections worldwide, Calder maquettes reside at Yale, Princeton, the National Gallery, the National Museum of American Art, and the Calder Foundation. Today, private collectors actively desire maquettes as they demonstrate the sculptor’s fascinating production
process.
Calder
Appraisal Value
Recent sales records for Calder’s maquettes are less than consistent. For instance, there was a 2004 Christie’s auction house sales record for Calder’s maquette of the never-realized public sculpture called National Gallery II (1972) intended for the National Gallery’s East Wing in Washington, D.C. Instead, National Gallery II was tabled and Calder provided a hanging mobile for the museum. In May 2004, National Gallery II maquette sold for $343,500.
In November 2005, Sotheby’s sold a Calder maquette called Haverford Monster for an astounding $1.4 million. Then, in August of 2006, a rare Calder maquette for the 1958 Brussels Worlds Fair turns up in Philadelphia at the Antiques Roadshow begging the question could it be worth that much? It doesn’t have the National Gallery II’s controversial history or Haverford Monster’s untested selling price, so how much do you think it is really worth? I encourage you to “be the appraiser”.
Remember, today’s fine art market for 1950s American painting and sculpture is sky high.
Dr. Lori
Director
Masterpiece Technologies Inc.
