KLEE Paul
Professor at the Bauhaus and poet of color, Paul Klee (1879-1940) is one of the great masters of the 20th century. Discover his Mourlot poster above.
Paul Klee, painter, poet of color and great educator
Paul Klee (1879-1940) is one of the most unique and influential artists of the 20th century. Painter, draftsman, engraver, musician, and professor, he invented a language of signs, arrows, colorful checkerboards, and small figures, between abstraction and reverie, which continues to inspire artists and collectors.
- 1879: born on December 18 in Münchenbuchsee, near Bern.
- 1898: leaves to study art in Munich.
- 1911-1912: joins the Blaue Reiter circle.
- 1914: travels to Tunisia, revelation of color.
- 1921-1931: professor at the Bauhaus, in Weimar then Dessau.
- 1933: expelled from the Düsseldorf Academy by the Nazis, returns to Bern.
- 1940: dies on June 29 in Muralto, near Locarno.
A childhood between music and drawing
Son of a German music teacher and a Swiss singer, Paul Klee grew up in Bern. A talented violinist, he hesitated for a long time between music and painting, before choosing the visual arts and leaving to study in Munich in 1898. Music, however, remained at the heart of his work: rhythms, polyphonies, and colorful scores structure many of his paintings.
His beginnings were those of an engraver. His first etchings, the "Inventions" of 1903-1905, depict satirical and strange figures with great precision. For years, Klee considered himself primarily a draftsman and sought how to conquer color.
The journey to Tunisia: "color and I are one"
Close to Vassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, he exhibited with the Blaue Reiter group. In April 1914, a short trip to Tunisia with August Macke and Louis Moilliet was a revelation. The light of Kairouan and Hammamet made him write in his journal: "Color possesses me. I am a painter." He then created watercolors constructed by small squares of color, foreshadowing his famous checkerboards.
The Bauhaus: teaching creation
From 1921 to 1931, Paul Klee taught at the Bauhaus, the art and design school founded by Walter Gropius. He gave courses on form and color theory, compiled in his "Pedagogical Sketchbooks," which remain a reference for artists and designers. His production was considerable: imaginary cities, gardens, magical fish, tightrope walkers, color architectures, and compositions based on arrows and lines.
Exile and final years
In 1931, he became a professor at the Düsseldorf Academy of Fine Arts, but was dismissed in 1933 by the Nazis, who later classified his works as "degenerate art." He took refuge in Bern. Suffering from a serious illness, he nonetheless worked with extraordinary energy: in 1939 alone, he created over 1,200 works. His last paintings, with large black signs, are among the strongest of his career. He died in 1940, a few days before Switzerland granted him the nationality he had requested. The Paul Klee Center, designed by Renzo Piano, now houses the world's largest collection of his works in Bern.
An inimitable style
Klee's art defies labels. He borrowed from expressionism, cubism, and surrealism without belonging to any movement. He also drew from children's drawings, writing, music, and nature, which he observed like a scientist. His formula sums up his approach: "Art does not reproduce the visible; it makes visible." His influence extends to Joan Miró, Jean Dubuffet, and Zao Wou-Ki.
Prints and posters: what to know
Paul Klee engraved and lithographed throughout his life, from the "Inventions" of his beginnings to the Bauhaus plates. His work is also disseminated through beautiful exhibition posters, notably those printed by the Mourlot studio for the Berggruen gallery, which played a major role in promoting Klee in Paris, are particularly appreciated by collectors for their print quality.
Paul Klee at Galerie 125
The gallery offers above an original poster printed by Mourlot for the Paul Klee exhibition at the Berggruen gallery, in Paris, in 1970. A sought-after piece, precisely described, carefully shipped, and accompanied by a gallery certificate. You can order it online or view it by appointment at our gallery, just minutes from Metz. Also to discover: Joan Miró, a great admirer of Klee, and Vassily Kandinsky, his friend and colleague at the Bauhaus.
Do you own a work by Paul Klee and wish to sell it? Find out how on our Sell a Work page.