Visited the Whitney*
For the Hoppers – what a treat!
A gathering of works with which
Few artists can compete.
Yet in a separate little room
A different treasure lay –
A film of “Calder’s Circus”
With its figures on display.
For Alexander Calder,
He of mostly-mobiles fame,
Put together, out of wire,
And deserving of acclaim
Every animal and acrobat
That we’d expect to see
At a circus, bringing them to life.
(At least, he did for me.)
With a twinkle in his eye,
He made the dogs and horses prance,
While the trapeze artists flew
And Fanni did her sexy dance.
There’s an elephant and lion
And a strong man and some seals,
Every figure bringing laughter
And how-did-he-do-that squeals.
Though I went to see the Hoppers,
I was thrilled with them, despite
Thinking Calder’s wire circus
Brought to me the most delight.
*The Whitney Museum of Art, Manhattan,
which currently has an Edward Hopper exhibit.
Alexander Calder
on of a scuptor pa & painter mother
Deceptively simple & sans guile
were his installation so mobile
In a bare field
hidden behind dense brush
There's a spot where people
cunningly come, dumping
their oversized trash.
Somehow word got out
years ago:
mattresses, appliances,
box springs; just about
anything one could perceive.
I often find myself there
in awe of this surreal collage.
A community collaboration;
sensational work of artistry.
Each tossed trash
enriching another, fitting
together like a
carefully planned sculpture-
creating a grand design.
Each trash dumper
contributing another
piece to the craft:
beer cans beside worn
baby strollers; bald tires
fitting nicely near
shopping carts.
They come one by
one, each in their
own special time
as if lovingly tossing
flowers into an open grave
has carefully as
Alexander Calder-
a masterpiece concealed-
very few will ever see.
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