Four ALSs signed either “Sandy,” “Sandy Calder,” or “Alexander Calder,” five total pages, dated between 1944 and 1947, with each letter addressed to art collector Harry Francis Burke on 5.5 x 3.25 postal cards or 8.5 x 11 sheets of personal letterhead. The earliest, dated October 6, 1944, in part: “Thanks for check. I looked for a note from you, or tel. call in N.Y.—but didn’t find any, sorry!…The Willard Gallery has some jewelry of mine. But I have some more in apt.” The second, March 3, 1945, in part: “Thanks for the 250—sent me by your friend…I sent the plaster over to the foundry about a week after I saw you in N.Y.”
The third, April 9, 1946, in part: “You’re quite wrong about my having ‘dire’ thoughts about you. On the contrary, when I heard you had gotten into trouble, I felt very sorry about it. My information being a bit vague, and very belated, I decided to just wait till I heard from you…No, don’t return anything to me, and continue to pay me when you can manage it…I calculated that you had paid me to that date 1600.—and the total you owed me was 500 / mobile 600, fish 400, 2 bronzes 1100 / 2100—1600 (I think we decided on a lesser amount).” The fourth, January 8, 1947, in full: “Thank you for your card. How are you and what are you doing?”
Also included is an unsigned handwritten letter fragment from Calder, which reads: “I guess your assumption about the price being less is very reasonable. Let’s make it 400.00 (instead of 500.—) I wrote to Peggy Guggenheim today to see if I could get a photo of the ‘bed head.’ If I can’t get one I…could you send me the inside diameter of the eye opening in the yellow frame? Personally I prefer the primary colors.” In overall very good to fine condition. Accompanied by four original mailing envelopes addressed in Calder’s own hand, as well as various receipts and money orders, and letters from the Alan Frumkin Gallery and the John and Mabel Ringling Museum of Art.
