Klee – (Orchestration)

Paul Klee - Seventeen, irr - 1923 - 23 x 28 cm - watercolour and ink on paper

I love Paul Klee for his independence and his desire for “pushing it”, as he so skillfully does in this composition.  He has released himself from the rules of composition, which is very difficult for all artists.  We all unconsciously seek balance when developing a composition and Klee has as well.  The combination of tension and balance is most impressive in this very interesting painting.

Having arrows pointing out of the painting can be considered a fundamental error in composition, but not in the hands of a very intelligent artist like Klee.  He  knows that composition is orchestrated, like music, and feeling and intuition is more important than rules.  He provided himself with an interesting challenge with the thrust of the arrows and simultaneously returning us to the left beautifully with the blacks notes at the left, particularly the number seventeen. We are now engaged in his poetry.

Klee’s elegance is worth striving for!

 

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