Description

Alexander Calder is one of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century. Although best known for his kinetic sculptures and mobiles, he also executed a range of black-and-white illustrations throughout his career. Using the same simplicity and playfulness of his sculptures, Calder created 85 drawings for Three Young Rats and Other Rhymes, a collection of children’s rhymes and tales selected by curator James Johnson Sweeney, who introduces the publication with a brief history of children’s tales and folklore. Cheekily cautioned to be “for adult readers only,” Three Young Rats and Other Rhymes was originally published in 1944 and is among the most delightful illustrated books of the twentieth century. This facsimile brings back into a print a smaller format edition to coincide with an exhibition at The Museum of Modern Art that illuminates Calder’s enduring relationship with the institution.