Paul Klee (1879-1940), Sinbad the Sailor, 1960

Lithograph from 1960, published by: SPADEM French, Signature: l.d. from print, Dimensions: 58 x 40.5 cm, whole sheet: 72.5 x 56 cm, Condition: good, discoloration on edges, small tear in lower part

Paul Klee (1879-1940) was a thoroughly unconventional artist. He emphasized the distinctiveness of his attitudes in everyday life, in political issues and, above all, in art. Despite his membership in the Munich Expressionist grouping "Der Blaue Reiter," his art never fully identified with the direction taken by other members of the association. This does not mean, however, that it was free from influence - on the contrary, Paul Klee drew inspiration from a wide variety of sources, and his greatness lay in his skillful application of them, while maintaining a unique style. In Paul's works one can find a strong interest in animal subjects, characteristic of the members of the "Blue Rider," and the influence of African art, extremely popular in the first half of the 20th century, is also evident. What distinguishes Klee, however, is his masterful handling of color patches, the tones of which harmonize perfectly with each other, creating a shimmering, full of depth painting plane, rippling in the manner of a composition played on the piano (which, by the way, Klee, as a talented musician, was inspired by). The artist's drawing technique cannot be passed over indifferently either, after all, Paul Klee in the first years of his artistic activity used only line, with which he created restless, and at the same time (especially in his later period of work) brought almost to the limit of synthesis representations. (www.vivalarte.eu)