Structural II 1924

Paul Klee's "Structural II" looks like it was coaxed into being through layers of patient mark-making. Imagine Klee, hunched over this surface, building up these tiny, gridded worlds. There's this real sense of searching, as if he’s not quite sure what he's looking for but he's determined to find it through the act of painting. It feels like he's building up a little civilization, block by block, with a restrained palette of blues, reds, browns and blacks. The paint application is thin, almost like a watercolor, which gives it this delicate, airy quality. See that red diagonal slash across a blue rectangle? It's like a sudden, bold decision amidst all the careful construction. It’s as if he wants to disrupt the grid. Klee's work always feels so deeply personal, like he’s inviting us into his own private language. You sense the work of other painters humming in the background, too. Klee, like all artists, was in conversation with those who came before and alongside him. That's how art evolves, through this ongoing exchange. It’s like a communal language, where each artist adds their own accent and slang.