Alexander CALDER (1898-1976)

Silver RR Initial Brooch, c. 1948

Unique brooch with mirrored double R initials hand-hammered from a single piece of silver wire and with a steel prong fastening.

Marks: unsigned, but recorded in the Calder Foundation Archives under no. A19066

Dimensions: H. 5.2 cm; W. 12.0 cm

Provenance: Made by the artists for one of his dealers Curt Valentin to give to a potential girlfriend with these initials, who although willingly accepting the brooch, spurned his advances.

Literature: Martine Newby Haspeslagh, Jewelry by Contemporary Painters and Sculptors 250:1967-2017, Didier Ltd, London 2017, pp. 36-7, no. 29