Sculptures that move
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Sculptures That Move — Daily trivia Thursday, August 13, 2026: questions and answers
All 10 questions with answers and explanations. Play this daily
Q 01In which institution's sculpture garden did the self-destroying machine Homage to New York perform once?
- AThe Guggenheim
- BThe Whitney
- CThe Museum of Modern Art
- DThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Show answer
The Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art's curator Peter Selz commissioned a machine built to destroy itself, and it gave its one and only performance in the museum's garden in March 1960.
Q 02Which American sculptor is widely recognized for pioneering the art form of the mobile, creating suspended works that move with air currents?
- AConstantin Brâncuși
- BHenry Moore
- CAlexander Calder
- DIsamu Noguchi
Show answer
Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder studied mechanical engineering before art, and the first works to be called mobiles ran on motors until he let air currents move them instead.
Q 03Which artist builds wind-powered walking 'Strandbeests' for beaches?
- AChristo
- BOlafur Eliasson
- CTheo Jansen
- DAnish Kapoor
Show answer
Theo Jansen
Theo Jansen builds them from yellow PVC tubes and cable ties, and he appeared as himself, Strandbeest in tow, in a 2016 episode of The Simpsons.
Q 04Which American sculptor is known for geometric abstractions moved only by air currents?
- AGeorge Rickey
- BDonald Judd
- CTony Smith
- DEllsworth Kelly
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George Rickey
George Rickey's blades turn on ball bearings with no motor, only wind and gravity; his father's job with the Singer sewing-machine company had moved the family to Scotland.
Q 05Which Swiss artist made 'meta-mechanical' scrap-metal sculptures that sometimes self-destructed?
- AMax Bill
- BRichard Serra
- CClaes Oldenburg
- DJean Tinguely
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Jean Tinguely
Jean Tinguely later built Study for an End of the World No. 2, which blew itself up before an audience in the Nevada desert near Las Vegas in 1962.
Q 06Which artist's 'Bicycle Wheel', a fork and wheel mounted on a stool, is an early 'readymade'?
- AMan Ray
- BMarcel Duchamp
- CSalvador Dalí
- DFrancis Picabia
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Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp's 1913 original was lost, so every Bicycle Wheel on show today is a later replica, including a 1964 edition made under his direction.
Q 07Which artist, known for wind-driven kinetic metal sculptures, designed the Rio Olympic cauldron?
- AAnthony Howe
- BJeff Koons
- CDamien Hirst
- DAi Weiwei
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Anthony Howe
Anthony Howe's spinning ring of reflective spheres and plates was built to magnify a deliberately small, low-emission flame at the Rio 2016 Games.
Q 08Which city hosted 'Le Mouvement', the gallery show credited with launching kinetic art?
- AParis
- BBrussels
- CGeneva
- DMontreal
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Paris
Paris's Galerie Denise René staged it in 1955, and Victor Vasarely wrote his 'Yellow Manifesto' for the show.
Q 09Which artist made The Peacock Machine and a body suit with a towering unicorn spike?
- ARebecca Horn
- BLouise Bourgeois
- CMarina Abramović
- DYayoi Kusama
Show answer
Rebecca Horn
Rebecca Horn was the youngest artist at documenta 5 in 1972, and her horned suit Einhorn ('Unicorn') carries a title that puns on her own name.
Q 10Which Russian Constructivist co-wrote the 'Realistic Manifesto', which called for 'kinetic rhythms'?
- AKazimir Malevich
- BNaum Gabo
- CVladimir Tatlin
- DEl Lissitzky
Show answer
Naum Gabo
Gabo was born Naum Pevsner and changed his surname to avoid confusion with his brother Antoine, his co-author on the manifesto; his 1920 Standing Waves is often called the first kinetic artwork.
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