Paul Klee Project

The Swiss/German artist, Paul Klee, was born in 1879 and today would have been his birthday. He was a great admirer of children’s art, primitive art, and deeply influenced by music, which he studied for years. Klee’s work has been associated with many different styles including Expressionism, Surrealism and Abstraction, but he generally liked to work independently, coming up with his own interpretation of trends. This combination of skills and interests, coupled with his mastery of colour and experimentation with different media, made Klee’s work unique.

In this project, we will focus on Klee’s use of geometric forms, symbols and figures applied to dreamlike coloured backgrounds.

Materials

• paper
• chalk pastels, including a black one
• small sponge
• blending stump

Instructions

1. Take some time to look at the images of Klee’s work that I have provided above and below. Notice how he creates blocks of colours that lie side by side, in a variety of shapes. Black lines are then added on top. Now create your own background using a variety of colours like Klee has done. You can use a small sponge and stump to blend the colours together.

2. Once completed, take the time to look at how geometric patterns, symbols (like hieroglyphs), animal and human shapes might naturally belong in your background. Add them in.

Here are some additional works by Klee making use of geometric forms, symbols and figures: