What if Calder's mobiles had never stopped moving—even when still, even when woven?

We are familiar with the suspended mobiles, the stabiles planted in the ground, the miniature wire circus. We are less familiar with the tapestries. Yet, starting in 1971, Alexander Calder designed 26 cartoons for the Pinton Manufactory in Aubusson—a major center of European weaving since the 15th century. His gouaches with their organic forms, bold colors, and taut lines then moved from paper to wool and silk.

These are not reproductions: the weavers' hand transforms the image, giving it a material presence, an architectural depth that paper lacked. The Hadjer Gallery, a historical reference point for modern Aubusson tapestry since 1966, brings together these monumental pieces in conjunction with the retrospective that the Louis Vuitton Foundation is dedicating to the American sculptor at the same time. Among them are The Masks and Green Ball, two emblematic designs exhibited at the Whitney Museum in 1976. The actual movement of the mobiles here becomes visual movement, inscribed in the weave of the textile. Calder on the wall, Calder without a motor – and it still moves .

HADJER GALLERY
From April 16 to May 31, 2026
102 rue du Faubourg-Saint Honoré, 75008
Metro Saint-Philippe-du-Roule (Line 9)
Mon. to Fri. 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Closed on Sun.
Free admission