Black Clouds
An early example of Calder’s free-hanging abstract sculptures, which Dada artist Marcel Duchamp christened “mobiles,” Black Clouds consists of two large sheets of metal painted black and suspended on string from a metal rod. These irregularly curved shapes derived from the sculptor’s interest in biomorphic forms, inspired by his encounters with European Surrealists, in particular Jean Arp and Joan Miró. The metal cutouts are balanced against four wood balls attached to one another by wire and string in a perfectly calibrated balancing act. The sculpture’s evocative title portends difficulty and fear, possibly in response to military conflict spreading across Europe in the lead-up to World War II.
Artwork Details
- Title: Black Clouds
- Artist: Alexander Calder (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1898–1976 New York)
- Date: ca. 1939
- Medium: Metal, wood, string, and paint
- Dimensions: 72 x 90 x 32 in. (182.9 x 228.6 x 81.3 cm)
- Classification: Sculpture
- Credit Line: Bequest of Andrea Bollt, 2012
- Object Number: 2012.448.2a–c
- Rights and Reproduction: © 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
- Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.