How to Make a Kinetic Sculpture

Kinetic sculpture was made famous by artist Alexander Calder. Creating kinetic sculpture does not require that you be a renowned artist. Kinetic means movement so sculptures that move are kinetic sculptures. Building a kinetic sculpture or mobile is fun and easy for adults and children. With simple materials like paper, glue and wire you can make a kinetic sculpture that is simple and beautiful.

Things You'll Need

• Colorful paper
• Stencils
• Glitter and gemstones
• Floral wire or wire hangers
• Paper clips
• Glue
• Hole punch
• Pliers

Instructions

1. Gather the materials so making the sculpture will be easy and simple.

2. Create the shapes you wish from the paper and decorate them using glitter and gemstones. You can draw freehand shapes, use stencils or trace geometric or whimsical shapes. Animals are fun too. Butterflies, insects and birds can hang from a mobile and seem to fly.

3. Begin wiring or stringing the shapes together by punching a small hole and using the thin wire to attach them to each other. You can construct a simple mobile by hanging a single paper shape on a wire or you can design an elaborate mobile by connecting small shapes together with thin wire, then connecting them to the middle size shapes to form a system of hanging units.

4. Connect the middle units with their attached small pieces to the wire hanger using the thin wire.

5. Hold the sculpture up or hang it at eye level so you can see if the pieces hang together and balance. You can experiment by moving units closer together or farther apart to create an asymmetrical shape that still balances.

6. Hang the sculpture indoors or outdoors in a gentle breeze and watch its gentle movements.

Resources

• Diagrams of possible kinetic sculptures frames
• Buy kinetic art and sculpture supplies at this website