A big blue bird landed on the Calder-terrace during the summer. The large-scale, colourful sculpture 'As Long as the Sun Lasts' stood as a powerful statement in the beautiful park.
The three sculptures by Alexander Calder are among the most iconic works in museum’s park, however during this summer a large, work by Alex Da Corte temporarily took the place of Calder’s iconic kinetic work Little Janey-Wayney.
The 26-foot-tall sculpture combines Calder’s iconic and graceful style with a heavier base, inspired by mass-produced toy kits that can be reassembled in different ways without tools. On a crescent moon with a ladder, perches a blue version of Big Bird, the beloved character from the American children’s TV show Sesame Street.
From New York to Humlebæk
The sculpture is from 2021, where Alex Da Corte was invited to create a site-specific installation for The Roof Garden of the The MET in New York. It is the ninth in a series of site-specific commissions for the outdoor space.
When visiting the museum rooftop in New York before starting working on the project, Alex Da Corte was struck by the immense power of the blue sky - and it became important for him, that whatever he created for this site must be "in service" of the sky.
The bird and I...
In this video, Alex Da Corte explains some of the many references you can find in his work. For example, why Big Bird is the colour blue, why the character sits with a ladder, and how Alexander Calder's original signature from the work 'Little Janey-Waney' was reinterpreted.
HIGH AND LOW
As Long as The Sun Lasts is a prime example of how Alex Da Corte deftly fuses disparate elements of high and low culture in a universe of bright colours, disguises and humour – though staying true to an underlying earnestness. In this way the work serves as a brilliant introduction to the artist and his practice, that is fully uncovered in the special exhibition at Louisiana entitled Mr. Remember.
