Paul Klee (1879-1940) is revered for his abstract, colourful paintings that employ geometry, his love of music and his creative, whimsical spirit. Here are six facts about the German artist that you may not know.
1. He was an excellent musician
Klee's parents were German music teacher Hans Wilhelm Klee and Swiss opera singer Ida Marie Klee, née Frick. Under these circumstances it is understandable that the Klee couple had in mind that their son would also embark on a musical career. And indeed it could have happened that way. Klee, who started playing the violin at the age of seven, proved to be extremely talented and within a few years had mastered the instrument. In his early days as an artist, he made his living as a violinist.
See also: The First Works of 10 Famous Artists
2. Cats were his favourite animal
Klee was a big cat lover. Over the course of their lives, he and his wife Lily owned at least six cats: Fritzi, Bimbo I, Nuggi, Mys, Skunk and Bimbo II. How much the painter's heart was attached to his domestic cats can be measured by how much freedom he gave them. They were welcome guests in his studio and repeatedly served as a source of inspiration. He even allowed them to walk across his canvases.
3. A trip to Tunisia transformed his art
The trip to Tunisia that Klee took from 7-19 April 1914 with Louis Moilliet and August Macke is regarded as a significant turning point in art history. In general, it is viewed as the crossroads of Expressionism and abstraction in Germany; on the other hand, it was a personal epiphany for Klee. Before the trip, he had mainly worked as a graphic artist and draftsman, but he discovered painting more for himself due to the special lighting conditions and colours of Tunisia.
See also: Abstract Art: From Genre to Movement
4. He fought in World War I
Another turning point for art at the beginning of the 20th century was the First World War, which changed the way people viewed art and grappled with emotions. Many lost friends and family members at the front, including Klee. At the beginning of the war, August Macke, with whom he had travelled through Tunisia a few months earlier, died at the front. Klee found out about Franz Marc's death in Verdun, with whom he had worked together in the editorial community, on the day that he himself was called up for military service in 1916. Later, he channelled his grief into pen and ink drawings.
See also: Josef Albers: Thinking Outside the Box
5. He was a teacher at the Bauhaus
For ten years, Klee taught at the Bauhaus, the influential German school that ushered in a modern and integrated approach to architecture, art and design. He taught alongside Wassily Kandinsky and Lyonel Feininger, important pioneers of modern art and fellow members of Der Blaue Reiter. The school had significant effects upon his work. He focused on colour theory and incorporating geometric shapes, straight-edged lines and delineated curves into his art.
6. Paul Éluard wrote a poem about him
When Klee was in Paris in 1925 for his first solo exhibition in France, he got to know the Surrealists. He took part in one of their exhibitions, but was not accepted into the group. However, the surrealist poet Paul Éluard contributed a poem entitled Paul Klee to the catalogue for Klee's solo exhibition .
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This is an updated version of an article originally published on 11 December 2020
