Fêtes (Celebrations)

Alexander Calder

1971

Color aquatints, letterpress, bound volume

Minneapolis Institute of Art

In 1926, Calder moved from New York to Paris, where he met many of the leading members of the European avant-garde, including Hayter, who would found the experimental print workshop Atelier 17 the following year. Calder's interest in printmaking began in earnest during this time, and though he returned permanently to America in 1933, his fascination with modernism and experimental art forms continued throughout his lifetime. Fêtes is a prose poem by French author Jacques Prévert honoring Calder's remarkable achievements as a modern artist. Prévert explained that Calder is a sorcerer…of happiness, one whose art is a pleasure of eyes