Park of idols 1938

Paul Klee made this oil transfer drawing called Park of Idols at some point in his career. Look at the way Klee simplifies his shapes and colours, it’s like he’s working it all out as he goes. You can see that some of the colours are transparent, and some are thick. It gives the piece a real sense of depth, like he’s layered up the colours. It’s not super clear if that gray shape is behind or in front of the orange circle is it? Check out the way the brown figure has been worked, you can see all these cool textures, it looks like a landscape and a body at the same time. It reminds me of Arthur Dove’s super abstracted landscapes. Klee is all about experimentation, he’s not afraid to try new things, he's showing us that art is not just about making a pretty picture, it's about the process of discovery.