Initial Public Art Project Becomes a Landmark

Hundreds of Grand Rapids residents turned out for the 1969 dedication of La Grande Vitesse, attended by its creator, Alexander Calder. Photo courtesy of the Grand Rapids Public Library

Stamped on everything from the city's letterhead to its garbage trucks, Alexander Calder's La Grande Vitesse is much more than a landmark. It's the ubiquitous symbol of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

"Literally and figuratively it's become the heart of the city. It's so fitting that it's bright red," says Nancy Mulnix, who first conceived the project. In 1967, Grand Rapids was building a new city hall downtown in the hopes it would help bring the blighted area back to life. Mulnix asked the fledgling federal arts agency to help the city commission a sculpture for the plaza in front of the new building.

Alexander Calder's La Grande Vitesse helped revitalize Grand Rapids' ailing downtown. It was the initial project of the NEA’s public art initiative that awarded $15 million to help create almost 700 works. Photo courtesy of the Grand Rapids Public Library

The Arts Endowment awarded a $45,000 grant to Grand Rapids, as part of the agency's new public art initiative. Mulnix and her committee raised the additional $83,000 needed to commission, ship and construct the new work. Alexander Calder, one of America's preeminent artists, was chosen to create the first civic sculpture jointly financed by federal and private funds. The NEA went on to fund almost 700 other works as part of its $15 million public art project.

In May 1969, Calder's 42-ton work arrived in Grand Rapids in a series of enormous crates. A huge crane lifted the 27 separate sections so they could be bolted into place. The whole process took five days. "It created a kind of a circus atmosphere," Mulnix remembers. "It was all laid out like a jigsaw puzzle. It was fascinating for people to watch this big object grow before their very eyes. The sparks flew as the welders worked and then the vivid color was painted on. It was like outdoor theater."

Alexander Calder (foreground) created La Grande Vitesse to provide a focal point for the city's center. Its success encouraged Grand Rapids' residents to pursue other arts-related projects including building new homes for their symphony, art museum and civic theater. Photo courtesy of the Grand Rapids Public Library

Literally translated, La Grande Vitesse means "the great swiftness." The work, standing 54 feet long, 43 feet high and 30 feet wide, was designed to provide dramatically different views from each corner of the square. Although the sculpture is stationary, it gives the appearance of movement.

The Calder had a dramatic impact on Grand Rapids, Mulnix says. "I thought it could function as an icebreaker does out on the Great Lakes in early February. It proved to be true; the Calder energized the community and made anything seem possible." It sparked the city's interest in other arts activities, she adds. A new home for the art museum, a civic theater and a symphony hall were soon built. The Calder sculpture's birthday is celebrated with an annual arts festival, encompassing ten city blocks and attended by a half a million people.

"It changed the role of the arts and public sculpture in the life of this community because of the sheer magnitude of La Grande Vitesse and the excitement surrounding it, as well as all the work the community did to bring it here," notes City Historian Gordon Olson. "It led to a change in attitude so that the assumption now is that every good community project should include a piece of public art."  

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