THE COLLECTION
Paul Klee (German, born Switzerland. 1879–1940)
Heroic Strokes of the Box (Heroische Bogenstriche)
- Date:
- 1938
- Medium:
- Pigmented paste on newspaper on dyed cloth on board in artist's frame
- Dimensions:
- 28 3/4 x 20 7/8" (73 x 53 cm)
- Credit Line:
- Nelson A. Rockefeller Bequest
- MoMA Number:
- 958.1979
- Copyright:
- © 2013 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
2006
The title of this late work suggests that the black zigzags refer to the rhythmic strokes of a violin bow. Evoking a tablet of hieroglyphs, these thick, seemingly unrehearsed lines traverse the ground, bounding dashes, circles, and indecipherable symbols. While barely legible beneath a layer of colored paste, comparatively delicate newspaper type runs vertically, rooting the work in its contemporary moment. Following the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany, from 1933 until his death Klee lived in exile in Switzerland. These last years of his life were marked by intense productivity and assertive directness.
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