Take a Jitney To The Whitney

I saw two great shows at the Whitney this weekend. www.whitney.org One was a large career retrospective of the great William Eggleston. It had everything, including the kitchen sink, and was great to see. What really surprised me though was the Alexander Calder show. "The Paris years, 1926-1933. The show focused primarily on his wire sculptures. A few drawings, paintings and additional sculptures are tossed in for good measure but the star of the show are his simple, brilliant and beautiful "drawings" in wire. In addition to being well crafted they are funny and have the kind appeal that makes them universally accessible regardless of age or experience. While some of the Eggleston pictures might require a certain knowledge about his work's place in the context of the history of his medium the same can't be said of the pieces by Calder. They are as inviting and attainable as a sunny day.