Original gouache and ink on Canson wove paper with watermark and blindstamp, 1970, hand signed and dated ‘Calder 70’ at the lower right corner, sheet: 74.9 x 110.5 cm. (29.5 x 43.5 in.)

‘Wheel and Stripes’ makes use of a simplified colour palette on a warm cream paper. The dominant spiral, or in this case wheel, is simply coloured in red and white laid against the blue and yellow stripes beneath. The work is evocative of billowing circus fabrics, in particular the ‘Big Top’ main tent and centre stage of circus performance. Kinetic energy is again implied by the concentric circles of the ‘wheel’ as it is juxtaposed with a static background.

In his 20s Calder attended the renowned Barnum & Bailey Circus for a two-week period – known as ‘The Greatest Show on Earth’. Much of the popular culture we associate with the circus, comes from this iconic travelling show. Full of inspiration, Calder created the moving components of the ‘Cirque Calder’ in the period of 1926-1931 and performed it in the United States as well as France. The figures were based on many real circus performers, yet every time the ‘Cirque Calder’ was performed, the routines would be different and spontaneous. He performed the circus for decades after his first show and it is considered a very early example of performance art.