Custom-Made Mobile Sculpture for TV Series And Just Like That
I recently made a custom mobile sculpture for the TV show And Just Like That … and installed on the set in a loft in New York City last week. Filming took place a couple of days after, and the art department informed me afterwards that the mobile “looked incredible on our set” and that it “was much admired”. The mobile should be visible in Season 2 Episode 5, which will be released on Thursday, July 13, 2023.
This is a photo of the yet-to-be-painted mobile in my work shop:
Made of aluminum, the mobile weighs only about 5 pounds (2.25 kg), so it moves even with the slightest air currents. The dimensions are approximately 10 feet (300 cm) in height and 10 feet in diameter.
A photo by Tanya Stadelmann from installation day:
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Update – July 13th 2023:
Here are screen captures from the episode where the mobile is featured when Sarah Jessica Parker‘s character (Carrie Bradshaw) visits Peter Hermann‘s character’s (George) place.
Mentions of the mobile, although (possibly) mistaken for a piece by Alexander Calder:
New York Times: ‘And Just Like That …’ Season 2, Episode 5 Recap
Decider: Peter Hermann is the Perfect ‘And Just Like That’ Love Interest — Until He Isn’t
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Upon request, the design is based on a mobile that I custom-made for a private residence in Long Island, New York about 10 years ago:
Update:
There will be two more mobiles sculptures that I’ve made in Season 3 of the series, of which the first episode was released on May 29th 2025.
– See more of my mobile sculptures –
Custom Mobile Art Project for the Rotunda at Titus Elementary School
Custom mobile project for the rotunda at Titus Elementary School in Warrington, PA.
The design is based on the school’s PAWS award (pictured below). PRIDE is an acronym for P-Pride, R-Respect, I-Individual, R-Responsibility, D-Determination, and E-Empathy. Students receive a PAWS award when they display one of these character traits.
Initial design for the mobile:
Renders of the mobile in the 3d model of the rotunda:
Calculating the balance points:
Laser cutting and engraving the parts with the help of an Epilog Fusion M2 at Big Secret:
The finished mobile installed in the rotunda:
The wall plaque in the rotunda:
A “fly-around” animation of the 3d model:
– See more of my mobile commissions or read more of my blog about mobiles –
Photos of Large Atrium Sculpture (Kinetic Art Mobile) Installed
Photos of a large atrium sculpture (kinetic mobile) I custom designed, made and installed (via The Art Company) at the newly built Joint and Spine Center at the Christ Hospital in Cincinnati, OH, last month (August 2015):
I competed against 22 sculptors for the commission including Zaha Hadid.
– See the design proposals that I submitted –
The sculpture measures 33ft (10m) in height and 26ft (8m) in diameter.
The largest shape is 5 2/3 ft long (1 3/4 m), the longest arm measures 17 3/4 ft (5 1/2 m) in length.
Made of aluminum, the mobiles weighs only about 100 pounds (45kg).
Two photos from the Grand Opening Celebration on August 28th 2015:
Render animation of the 3D model of the mobile:
The hospital is located on a hilltop in historic Mt. Auburn above downtown Cincinnati. The view from the hospital’s rooftop garden:
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) designed the new Joint and Spine Center, the same architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firm that also collaborated with Alexander Calder on numerous projects from the 1950s through the 1970s. A view from outside of the suspended sculpture in the atrium:
The 125 year old Christ Hospital is consistently recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the nation’s top hospitals. Here’s an outside view of the newly built Joint and Spine Center with the atrium in which the sculpture is installed at the main entrance:
These are photos that I took myself. Professional photos should follow within a month. Here’s one by Tom Rossiter for Health Care Design Magazine:
Thanks to Mike Rainer of Mike’s Machine & Welding for assisting with the fabrication of the mobile.
– See more of my large mobile art –
Working on What Might Become a Very Large Suspended Kinetic Art Installation
Working on what might become a very large (207ft / 63m long) suspended kinetic art installation at the departure concourse at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica:
Renders of the suspension (designed with Rhino):
Building the maquette (small scale model):
The design is by Tina Spiro with me and Ervin Nichol and inspired by the Petchary, a bird that migrates between the southeastern United States and Central America (including Jamaica):
See more of my custom hanging kinetic art sculptures or read more of my blog about mobiles and suspended kinetic art installation.
Busy, Busy, Busy – Large Custom Mobiles, Proposals, Article …
Sorry for the lack of blog posts in the last two months, I’ve been too busy. Besides writing an article about mobiles for the interior decorating website Houzz, here are some of the projects that have been keeping me busy:
3 large (16ft/5.3m) custom mobiles for an atrium at a hotel. I will have photos of them once they’re installed on location [Update: photos of the mobiles installed at the atrium]. For now, here are the unpainted aluminum shapes ready to be assembled. The largest ones measure 5 ft / 1.5 m in length:
And a render courtesy of Studio 3877 Architecture:
Working on a proposal for a giant mobile (150 ft / 50 m) for an airport for, what could be, the largest mobile in the world. One part of the study:
Other proposals:
– The one above I actually made in August –
– Read more of my blog about mobiles or see more of my mobiles –
Where I get the materials for large custom mobiles
I took a couple of photos with my phone the other day of the place where I pick up materials for the large custom mobiles that I make. I can just stand there and imagine all the giant mobiles that could be made with this stuff:
– See my mobiles or read more of my blog about mobiles –
Large Custom Calder-Style Mobile Installation in Buenos Aires
These are photos I recently received from a client. I made a 12 feet (3.5 meter) tall Calderesque mobile for his two story atrium. I previously posted photos of this mobile at a local park a day after it snowed. After taking those pictures, I disassembled the mobile and pack it small enough so that it could be taken onto an airplane. Then the mobile was reassembled on location in Buenos Aires by the client’s assistant, Jorge:
The shapes (paddles) had to be reattached and the new rivets needed to be painted.
Mini-pulley system for the roof designed by Jorge to raise the mobile:
The design of the mobile:
Measurements of the atrium:
The design of the mobile photoshopped into pictures of the space (the colors for the mobile had yet to be decided at this point):
Photos of the installed mobile:
From the client: “The mobile is truly beautiful! [It] lives up to our expectations – which were inordinately high! The wonderful thing we discovered is the full meaning of the word ‘mobile’. With the advent of winter, we have turned on the heat on occasion. What that causes is real movement — almost a revolution per minute as the warm air floats upward. At night, with the lights on, the shadows play across the wall as well. Beautiful!”
And for kicks, a local cafe in Buenos Aires around the corner from the residence where the mobile now is:
Read more of my blog about mobiles or see more of my large custom mobiles.
Photos of a large custom mobile I installed in Texas last week
Photos of a large custom mobile I installed in a lobby at a commercial real estate company in Houston, Texas last week:
The shapes of the “paddles” are inspired by Alexander Calder‘s mobiles. Here with a Barcelona Chair designed by Mies van der Rohe:
The custom design is based on proposals I previously posted on my blog here. The custom colors for the mobile are based on the circular rug in the lobby.
Photo: Marilyn Franklin
– On-site installation took less than an hour –
Photo: Marilyn Franklin
Measuring 12 feet (3 1/2 meters) in height and 10 feet (3 meters) in diameter, made of steel, rivets, primer and paint. The mobile weighs about 15 pounds (7 kilograms).
Email from the project manager/designer: “Thanks again for all the care and time you took creating the beautiful mobile. I got a text from the client today that it “looks fantastic!” – he is very pleased.”
Read more of my blog about mobiles or see more of my large custom mobiles.
Designs for large custom mobiles for a two story lobby
Designs for large custom mobiles for a two story lobby in Houston, TX – The client requested a Calder-style mobile that would help create a modern, classy, airy feeling:
Design 1:
In red and black, a classic Calder combination:
Again, in red and black:
Design 2:
First floor perspective:
Design 3 – inspired by the shapes on a rug that will be in the lobby:
Design 4 – Showing a different type of mobile structure with a mid-century modern art design element to it:
[Update: The client picked “Design 2” – see photos of the finished and installed mobile]
– Or see more of my other custom mobiles –
Large Custom Calder-Style Mobile at Snowy Park
It was snowing yesterday so I took this large Calder-style mobile I just finished to the park, thinking the red and black shapes would probably show off nicely against the white of the snow in the photos. It’s a custom made 12 feet (3.5 meter) tall Calderesque mobile made of carbon cold rolled steel made for a client’s two story atrium:
Upon the client’s request, I disassembled this mobile after taking these photos and packed it so tightly that he could bring it to Buenos Aires on an airplane. See the photos of the reassembly and installation of the mobile on location.
Not a Calder reproduction, but definitely strongly Calder inspired.
And just for fun, here’s a GIF animation with a snow flurry (pun intended for the Calder aficionados reading this):
– Read more of my blog or see more of my large custom made mobiles –
Included in over 1000 Ideabooks on Houzz
How To Make Mobiles:
- Houzz Article -
- Balance Basics -
- What Wire to Use -
- FAQ Mobile Making -
- MAKE Magazine Article -