Sunset
Paul Klee
PAUL KLEE, 1930. OIL ON CANVAS.
In music theory, “Polyphony” refers to the combination of multiple tones or melodies to create a textural sound. Paul Klee was a trained and talented violinist, as well as a radical visual artist of the Bauhaus, and he took his understanding of music theory into the visual realm to create an aesthetic idea of polyphony in painting. The concept needs little explanation that is not provided by Klee’s work itself, and his idea that music was key in creating new, abstract art runs through every element of his painting. Here, in ‘Sunset’, we can see a remarkable visual harmony formed through separate aesthetic, painterly melodies. Abstract, geometric forms, tenderly painted but not altogether gentle in their rigorous shapes, take up the bulk of the compositional weight, set against an ebbing background of soft hues that reveal the artists hand. Above these, fit into the forms, is an intricate pattern of dots that bring a pace, and frenetic energy to the work, while a bright, single colour red sun sits at the base, a small arrow indicating its direction of travel. The work has a natural rhythm to it, each element works in harmony with the next, while retaining an individual visual feeling. Klee creates an orchestra of forms, techniques and colors and conducts them towards a piece of modernist beauty.