Old Man Counting 1929

Paul Klee made this etching, Old Man Counting, with simple lines that create a dreamy, contemplative mood. I can imagine Klee carefully scratching away at the metal plate, each line a deliberate mark that adds to this guy's story. Look how the horizontal lines give a sense of being, of existing in time, while his face peeks out of the picture plane. His eyes are just squares with circles inside them, like he’s seeing numbers instead of objects. And the hands! They're all twisted and fidgety, as though he’s counting something precious, maybe even his blessings. I bet Klee was thinking about time, aging, and memory when he made this. Klee was onto something profound. Like other modern artists, he knew painting is a conversation across time, we add to it with every stroke and every glance.