Paul Klee

Scherzo with Thirteen (Das Scherzo mit der Dreizehn)

1922

Oil transfer drawing, watercolor, ink, and pencil on paper on board

Not on view

During his tenure at the Bauhaus, Klee explored distinctive ways of image–making, including transfer drawings. This work was executed by tracing the lines of a pencil drawing through a black-inked surface onto another clean sheet of paper. The clean sheet received the outline of the drawing in black as well as additional smudges of excess pigment, to which Klee then directly added motifs in watercolor and ink. The arching and angled arrows, before which whimsical figures appear to dance, indicate motion and spatial depth. The reference to music, a mainstay in Klee's life and in his Bauhaus activities, is underscored by the word "scherzo," referring to a vigorous and playful composition, in the work's title.

Gallery label from

2006.

Medium Oil transfer drawing, watercolor, ink, and pencil on paper on board
Dimensions 11 x 14 1/8" (27.9 x 35.9 cm)
Credit Purchase
Object number 139.1951
Department Drawings and Prints

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