One of the most influential artists of the twentieth century, Alexander Calder (1898–1976) disrupted traditional boundaries in art with his suspended abstract mobiles and his monumental stabiles. Removing sculpture from the pedestal, he invited viewers to experience his art directly, a concept that extends to his performative pieces, furniture design, jewelry, and even his paintings.

Calder Playing Cards are based on a set of vivid gouache paintings from the 1970s known as the Card Player series.

Since court cards were not included in the original images, the faces for the Jack, King, and Queen were extracted from another series of gouaches that Calder painted around the same period.