Show Notes
Paul Klee loved working in a wide variety of styles at once in his paintings: abstract, representational, runic or symbolic. His oeuvre literally contains multitudes. I recently saw a show of his late works in New York at the Jewish Museum and was amazed at how many mediums and approaches to painting were on display. This episode honors him and his radical reconsideration of Painting with a side detour on Magritte. Come along for a wild ride!
Klee works mentioned: Around the Fish 1926, Suffering Fruit 1934, Struck from the List 1933, This Star Teaches Bending 1940, Angel, Still Female 1939, Drinking Companion 1931
Magritte works mentioned: Le Stropiat (version 1 and 2-both 1948), Jean-Marie 1948, A Stroke of Luck 1948, Seasickness 1948, The Famine 1948, The Pictorial Content 1948 Host note: “The Famine” cheekily referenced the characters in a popular French comic series of the day called Adventures of the Pieds Nickelés (nickel plated feet)* created by Louis Forton and told the story of 3 bumbling and good for nothing criminals who constantly fail at their mission. *a French term for lazy slackers See more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Pieds_Nickel%C3%A9s
Artists mentioned: Paul Klee, Hilma af Klint, Agnes Martin, Giorgio Morandi, Hannah Wilke, René Magritte, Pablo Picasso, Emil Nolde, Wassily Kandinsky, Henri Rousseau, Ludwig Meidner, Richard Seewald, Oskar Kokoschka, Henri Matisse, Giorgio de Chirico, Gerhard Richter, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, André Breton, Diego Velázquez (Las Meninas 1656)
Writers mentioned: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Sarah Gottesman, Charles W. Haxthausen, Wilhelm Hausenstein, Louis Scutenaire, George Kubler, Michael Foucault
Links: Paul Klee: Other Possible Worlds exhibit at the Jewish Museum 2026 https://thejewishmuseum.org/exhibitions/paul-klee-other-possible-worlds/
Paul Klee’s Bauhaus Assignments: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-how-to-be-an-artist-according-to-paul-klee
Picasso’s Return to Order Period: https://theculturalcritic.com/picassos-conflict-how-the-great-war-caused-him-to-radically-change-his-style/
Magritte's Vache Period: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-9-times-historys-greatest-artists-made-bad-artworks https://www.tate.org.uk/tate-etc/issue-11-autumn-2007/ill-find-way-slip-great-big-incongruity-time-time https://www.moma.org/artists/3692-rene-magritte
Hannah Wilke's Flower Series: https://www.marcselwynfineart.com/exhibitions/hannah-wilke2#tab:thumbnails;tab-1:slideshow
Foucault's essay "The Order of Things" (Les Mots et les Choses) on Velázquez and Klee: https://monoskop.org/images/a/a2/Foucault_Michel_The_Order_of_Things_1994.pdf
More on Charles W. "Mark" Haxthausen's paper: Paul Klee, Wilhelm Hausenstein, and the “Problem of Style” (2014) Watch: https://www.ias.edu/ideas/2014/haxthausen-klee-video Read: https://www.academia.edu/6541479/Paul_Klee_Wilhelm_Hausenstein_and_the_Problem_of_Style_publication_
Paul Klee books: Paul Klee: Other Possible Worlds by Mason Klein, Senior Curator at The Jewish Museum Paul Klee: Life and Work by Michael Baumgartner, Christine Hopfengart, Fabienne Eggelhöfer, Osama Okuda
Amy's Solo exhibition in Los Angeles (Atwater Village) "The Weight of Colors" at The Middle Room 3229 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, CA Oct 24-Nov 22, 2026 Reception, Sat Oct 24 6-8 and Artist Talk, Sun Oct 25 1-3 Come on out, y'all! https://www.themiddleroomgallery.com/exhibitions
Thank you, Peps Listeners!
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