Last modified: Friday, August 3, 2007
Calder stabile to get facelift beginning Monday
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug. 3, 2007
Restoration of the Peau Rouge Indiana, the stabile outside the Indiana University Musical Arts Center, begins Monday (Aug. 6).
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Restoration of the Peau Rouge Indiana, the stabile outside the Indiana University Musical Arts Center, begins Monday (Aug. 6).
The stabile, created by sculptor Alexander Calder (1898-1976), will be completely stripped of all paint layers, removing all traces of lead paint that may still be present on it. Indiana University's Office of Environmental, Health, and Safety Management will supervise the waste removal. Conservators will then repaint the sculpture in the original "Calder Red."
IU has worked for two years with conservators to form an agreement on the best methods of addressing the environmental and artistic interests involved in this renovation. Peau Rouge is the last stabile that Calder designed and engineered, and it has resided in front of the Musical Arts Center since its opening in 1971.
Work on Peau Rouge is the first of several major renovations on the IU Bloomington campus that are scheduled for this fall and next spring. Other works scheduled for renovation include the Indiana Arc by Charles O. Perry, Showalter Fountain and a bust of Herman B Wells by Robert Laurent.
The sun and other elements have caused the paint on the Calder stabile to flake. A restoration project will restore the stabile to its original luster.
