Shot in 16mm inside the studio of artist Alexander Calder (1898–1976) in Roxbury, Connecticut, Enigmatic Whisper draws a filmic portrait of one of the protagonists of twentieth-century art through images of tools and work materials, conserved as Calder left them, as well as the natural external context. Enigmatic Whisper focusses on one of Calder’s mobiles—kinetic sculptures that are among his most iconic works—still hanging from the ceiling of the studio.
Film commissioned and produced by Calder Foundation, New York, in collaboration with Victoria Brooks. © Rosa Barba. Alexander Calder, Untitled, c. 1968 © 2017 Calder Foundation, New York, all rights reserved.
Enigmatic Whisper, 2017
16mm film, color, optical sound, 8 min
Images 1, 2: Film still © Rosa Barba
Images 3: Installation view at CCA, Kitakyushu, Japan, 2019. Photo © Rosa Barba
Enigmatic Whisper, 2017 has been on display at the following locations:
Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin, 2021
Wäinö Aaltonen Museum of Art, Turku, 2020
Center for Contemporary Art, Kitakyushu, 2019
Centro Botín, Santander, 2019
International Film Festival Rotterdam 2018
Secession, Vienna 2017
Pirelli HangarBicocca, Milan, 2017
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York 2017