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Painting and Sculpture

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Paul Klee. Portrait of an Artist. 1927

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Portrait of an Artist

Paul Klee (German, born Switzerland. 1879-1940)

1927. Oil and collage on cardboard over wood with painted plaster border, 24 7/8 x 15 3/4" (63.2 x 40 cm). Mrs. Simon Guggenheim Fund. © 2009 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

195.1966

Gallery Label Text

2006

Here Klee has portrayed an artist as tightrope walker—an elongated stick figure with bent knee and outstretched arms. The figure strikes a precarious balance by adjusting the round balls or weights it holds. This set of lines and shapes, including the steps and yellow platform, can also be read as a face—the balls form eyes and the bent leg becomes a nose. Though painted, this linear composition embodies Klee's definition of drawing: "A line going for a walk."

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Portrait of an Artist

Paul Klee (German, born Switzerland. 1879-1940)

2006

The Museum of Modern Art

MoMA