El Sol Rojo; Alexander Calder

El Sol Rojo (The Red Sun) is often cited as the largest work ever created by Alexander Calder. Standing at 25.8 meters in height, it’s made entirely of steel. The work was one of three “invitational” works made to accompany the 19 that make up the Ruta de la Amistad.  The three invited artists’ works adorn the three main venues of the Olympics. The main Route of Friendship was designed to line the highways in the area of the Olympic Village in the south of Mexico City.

While most of the original works have been relocated over the more than 50 years since the Olympics, Calder’s Red Sun still reigns over the grounds of the Estadio Azteca. The warm “sun” in the center of the work is said to reflect remarkable atmospheric changes in its constantly shifting tone.

• Alexander Calder (1898–1976) is often cited as one of the leading innovators of 20th-century sculpture. Widely collected, he made movement and color into the main elements of the works that are seen in public aroung the world. The work here was accompanied by a tremendous series of lithographs and prints that challenge this work’s somewhat sinister side. In fact, it’s a work of great levity despite the daunting scale.

The work was restored in 2009. Since then El Sol Rojo has been maintained by the American Express company.