Paul Klee is an artist I love to look at when feeling like I've lost the playful edge in my own art (usually when in the midst of a long beaded piece, like the one I am doing now.) I remember the first time I encountered Klee's work. It was a college trip to NYC and there was an extensive exhibit of his work at the Guggenheim Museum. I was flabbergasted at what I saw. The lighthearted and free works were actually beautifully crafted and well made. Klee experimented with grounds, even painting on a dishcloth mounted to board. The geometric constructions he created on flat surfaces reminded me of the quilted pieces I was then experimenting with. His art struck a very powerful chord in me -- like a huge, ear shattering gong. He was an incredibly productive artist, too -- credited to making 8,926 works of art in his lifetime (lame citation, but I knew it was a really high number!) Now THAT is productive!
After being dumbstruck by Klee's art, I did my usual artist obsession in reading every book I could get my hands on (pre-Internet, alas) and learning about why he made art. Could these highly abstract images have meeting? What was he trying to say? I delved into the Bauhaus movement and developed several other artistic obsessions along the way (Oskar Schlemmer, Lyonel Feininger, Kandinsky.) I also learned something that resonates with me more and more each day -- that Paul Klee had a serious autoimmune disease, scleroderma, and wrestled with it throughout his life. While I was learning about Klee and his persistence despite this physical challenge, I had no idea that a similar fate would be facing me starting at the age of 35. It seems like art was an intellectual escape from the physical realm, and his large body of work stands as evidence for success despite physical burdens. Cheers, Klee, cheers!
An excellent article about a recent exhibit of Klee's work at Boston College can be read here. It describes the philosophical approach Klee took in his art, the one that must have helped him regularly create. I bet he made art every day!!
What are you going to make today?