Old Man Counting 1929

Paul Klee made this print, Old Man Counting, using etching, a process that can feel a bit like drawing with acid! The lines feel very personal, like a stream of consciousness in ink. The way the lines define the form is so interesting. Look at how the horizontal lines run right through his face and body. It’s like he's made of layers, or maybe he's not quite solid. The eyes are just these simple shapes and the ear is a backwards ‘S,’ it’s like Klee is playing with the idea of a portrait, rather than trying to create a likeness. That hand, though—it's so expressive. The way the fingers are intertwined, you can almost feel him thinking, planning, lost in his calculations. It reminds me a little of Picasso and Braque, those cubists who deconstructed everything. But Klee brings this whimsical, almost childlike sensibility to it. His work is always a delightful puzzle.