That’s the assessment of Alex J. Taylor, a renowned expert on the work of Alexander Calder upon seeing the artist’s 500-pound mobile called “Pittsburgh” now installed in the atrium area of the new landside terminal of Pittsburgh International Airport. Calder created the piece for the Carnegie International in 1958, and it’s been displayed now at three different Pittsburgh airport terminals since 1959.
“It looks much more delicate in this setting than it did in its prior space,” Taylor added.
The mobile, which carries an insurance value of $12 million, was the centerpiece of the airport’s media tour on Thursday that aimed to showcase much of the new artwork that graces the new terminal — even on the outside of the five-story parking garage.
“The idea from the beginning was not to build an airport in Pittsburgh, but to build Pittsburgh’s airport,” said Christina Cassotis, airport CEO. “It needed to reflect and serve this community by bringing in the assets of the community and putting them on display for the world to see. And we know Pittsburgh punches way above its weight when it comes to arts and culture and has a rich legacy of doing so.”
There are 15 artists who have contributed their work, 80% of whom are from Pittsburgh.
Calder, a Pennsylvania native who died in 1976, had several of his mobiles displayed at airports around the country, with one of the largest still hanging at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, Taylor said. “Some of those other airports, like Dallas and Chicago, lost them,” he added.
Still, the Calder mobile has a bit of a spotted history in Pittsburgh. After it was purchased by G. David Thompson and donated to Allegheny County, the county decided — without Calder’s permission — to paint the mobile yellow and green, the official colors of Allegheny County, said Taylor, an Australian who is associate professor in the Department of History of Art and Architecture at the University of Pittsburgh.
“He was very grumpy about it,” he said about Calder. Later, the mobile was painted red — an action that Calder approved — but the color came out more pink. Then, changes were made to prevent the mobile paddles from moving with the air currents. Another time, they put what Taylor called “a horrendous advertising booth” underneath the mobile.
“It was treated very poorly. It wasn’t until the 1970s that it was restored to its original colors” of black and white, like it is today.
“I think in the ’50s, airport officials probably didn’t quite understand what this thing was and the idea that they could repaint it probably didn’t seem so outrageous to them,” he said. “Of course now we understand it’s one of [Calder’s] greatest works.”
Keny Marshall, arts and culture manager at the airport, said the mobile, which had been removed from the current terminal a while ago, was in good shape and all it needed was a cleaning before they installed it last week.
Calder Gardens in Philadelphia will open to the public on September 21, 2025, following a celebratory week of special events, and you can now purchase memberships and advance tickets online. In the lead-up to its inauguration, Calder Gardens announced the September 2025 opening in January 2025, unveiled its new website and visual identity in May 2025, and in 2022, the design by Herzog & de Meuron was unveiled for the Philadelphia cultural destination. For more information, please visit: https://caldergardens.org/
https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/author/virginia-linn/
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