You probably know Alexander Calder from his wildly popular mobiles. But he got famous for his earlier work on his Circus.The Whitney Museum has featured parts or all of Alexander Calder’s Circus in their locations both on Madison Avenue and now downtown in their amazing spot at the foot of the High Line. In 1926 as a young American artist living in Paris, Calder 1898–1976) began making what is today considered his most formative work of art – his Circus. Calder created a miniature spectacle of circus animals and characters that he would enact for live audiences, complete with handmade stage props, music, and lighting. Performances of the multiact Calder’s Circus, sometimes lasted as long as two hours and drew audiences from the city’s avant-garde. Calder would perch on the floor manipulating the figures—each crafted from ordinary materials, such as wire, wood, metal, cork, fabric, and string—which, through his mechanical inventiveness and the pliability of their bodies, would fly through the air, swallow swords, and accomplish other daring feats. The Whitney’s High Wire: Calder’s Circus at 100 marks the centennial anniversary of this iconic work by bringing it together with other examples of Calder’s circus-themed wire sculptures and drawings, related archival material, and early examples of his abstract sculptures. For Calder, the circus offered a dynamic subject through which he could explore the core ideas of balance and movement that would define his artwork from 1931 onward, especially his invention of the “mobile” sculpture—an origin story for an artist who once claimed, “I think best in wire.” Unfortunately, this amazing and fun exhibit closes today. You can easily go to You Tube and find videos of this fun artistic endeavor.