Tannen=Wald=Hall, Riesen=Stadt am Häxen=See 1919

This dazzling drawing, Tannen=Wald=Hall, Riesen=Stadt am Häxen=See, was created by Adolf Wölfli, and it seems to be made with colored pencils, or maybe crayons. Looking at this picture is like walking into a fun house, the kind with all the mirrors. This drawing is not about one single image, it’s about repetition and layering. The layers feel really important. It’s like he’s building up a surface, like scar tissue, or maybe like the rings of a tree? The colors are bright, but controlled, and you can see how the pressure of the pencil changes to give a sense of depth, like he is going over and over the same area. The edges of the drawing are covered in all these little musical notations. It reminds me a little of Paul Klee, another Swiss artist, who was also obsessed with music. Wölfli was really out there. His art seems to come from a place deep inside himself. It's kind of wild and strange, but also completely, wonderfully, original.