Struck from the List 1933

Paul Klee created "Struck from the List" using oil transfer and colored paste on paper. At first glance, we see an arrangement of geometric forms and a muted palette of browns and oranges, disrupted by stark black lines. Klee’s use of simple shapes is not merely decorative, but rather a semiotic system. The overlaid black lines create a visual conflict, seemingly cancelling out or negating aspects of the composition, suggesting themes of erasure or removal. The fragmented shapes, arranged in a quasi-figurative way, destabilize any clear representational reading. The texture, achieved through the oil transfer technique, adds another layer of complexity, inviting us to contemplate the process of creation and destruction inherent in the artwork. Through these formal elements, Klee challenges fixed meanings and invites us to consider art as a space for re-interpretation.