Opera Gallery is pleased to present Calder/Hiquily: Balancing Act, an exhibition dedicated to the artists Alexander Calder (1898-1976) and Philippe Hiquily (1925-2013) from April 15- May 4, 2025. Featuring 8 works on paper and 21 sculptural works, this exhibition presents a visual dialogue about Calder and Hiquily’s shared fascination with movement, material, and form.
Alexander Calder, who studied mechanical engineering before pursuing art at the Art Students League in New York, is known for his pioneering mobiles and kinetic sculptures, that revolutionised modern sculpture with the innovative use of wire and metal. With his use of mathematics and principles of engineering, Calder’s practice represented a broader conceptual engagement with the relationship between humans and machines, as well as art and technology. By Calder’s estimation, kinetic art was striving to “lift the figures and scenery off the page and prove undeniably that art is not rigid”. Calder’s 1953 mobile New Old Universe, with its colourful, spherical forms suspended in perfect harmony, exemplifies the synchronicity between precision and coincidence at the core of his practice.
Like Calder, Hiquily’s work broke from formalist traditions with his sculptures that blended principles of movement and balance and the element of chance in response to external conditions. With his Girouette series–which translates to ‘weathervanes’–Hiquily fused organic forms and figurative elements that were designed to move with the wind, much like a traditional weathervane. The painted steel sculpture Girouette Hiver, 2013-20, features adjoined, curvilinear components replete with cut-out circular shapes that deftly exhibits Hiquily’s formal training as a metalworker. With his signature welding techniques and the use of counterweights and pivoting joints, Hiquily created works that embraced fluidity between categories and conceptual explorations. Hiquily, who cited Calder as one of his primary artistic influences, also incorporated ideas and aesthetics from Surrealism and Dadaism into his sculptures, which contributed to the whimsical and unconventional nature of his work.
Typically constructed with metals such as aluminium and steel, both Calder and Hiquily’s sculptures emphasised durability and industrial aesthetics while concurrently evoking an anthropomorphic sense of playfulness and vitality. Through a carefully curated selection of works, this exhibition reveals a dynamic interplay between Calder and Hiquily while demonstrating how Calder’s inventive approach laid the groundwork for the development of Hiquily’s visual language.
In addition to sculptures, the exhibition features 7 of Calder’s works on paper made with gouache and ink with their bold colours and rhythmic compositions that served as a visual counterpoint to Hiquily’s sculptural explorations of balance, weightlessness, and abstraction. These two dimensional works—essential to Calder’s creative process—embody the same sense of visual balance seen in his sculptures.
“We are delighted to bring together these two masters in Dubai, a city that itself balances tradition and innovation, offers a fresh perspective on their shared artistic ethos. ‘Balancing Act’ is not just a title—it is the very essence of this exhibition, an invitation to witness how movement, space, and gravity unite in a seamless dialogue between two visionaries of modern sculpture.” Said Opera Gallery Dubai Director Sylvain Gaillard.
Press release from Opera Gallery
Image: Alexander Calder. New Old Universe. 1953. Wood, wire, string and paint. 106.7 x 185.4 x 8.3 cm. Image courtesy of the artist
