An abstract drawing with painted black lines and pastel colored shapes.
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Thin bold lines float on a pale rose background. Some lines intersect with others to enclose rectangular or curved shapes, which are colored in shades of blue or pale green chalk pastel. They appear on a vertical rectangle of burlap which lends its rough texture to the background, and its frayed edges form a thin border around the piece.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2009.2
People
Paul Klee, Swiss (Münchenbuchsee near Bern, Switzerland 1879 - 1940 Muralto-Locarno, Switzerland)
Title
Slightly Dry Poem
Other Titles
Original Language Title: Leicht Trockenes Gedicht
Classification
Drawings
Work Type
album leaf, drawing
Date
1938
Culture
Swiss
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/330762

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Oil and pastel on burlap, mounted on card
Dimensions
burlap, irregular: 58.5 x 45 cm (23 1/16 x 17 11/16 in.)
mount: 68.9 x 50 cm (27 1/8 x 19 11/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • Signed: Titled, numbered and dated on mount in ink: 1938. T12 leicht trockenes Gedicht
  • (not assigned): Inscription on verso, u.l., in artist's hand: 1938T21 leicht trockenes Gedicht
    On backing board: 15 loan labels for temporary loan to the Fogg Art Museum, 1 loan label for temporary loan to Busch-Reisinger Museum (130.1966)
  • label: removed from backing board: Busch-Reisinger Museum / Cambridge, Mass. / Loan no. 130.1966 / Lender Mr. & Mrs. F. B. Deknatel / Cambridge, Mass
  • label: removed from backing board: Hasenkamp / Koln - Bonn - Dusseldorf / Leicht trockenes Gedicht / 60 x 46 cm / Kunstler: P. Klee / Frankreich / Leihgeber: Berggruen & CIE
  • label: removed from backing board: International Art Transport / 60, Rue Saint-Sabin Paris XIe / ROQuette: 69-92 / 1620 / Los Angeles
  • label: removed from backing board: 16 Fogg Art Museum Deknatel loan labels with the following numbers: 18714.7, 20553.12, 18296.1, 17586.11, 16967.7, 16259.5, 15740.6, 40710.1, 28427.4, 25539.4, 24051.7, 21518.3, 22157.1, 27146.4, 22712.1, 24807.3

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Rolf and Catherine E. Buergi, Bern
Max Huggeler, Bern (until 1963)
Berggruen & Cie (1963-1965)
Professor and Mrs. Frederick B. Deknatel (acq. 1965)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Busch-Reisinger Museum, Bequest of Virginia H. Deknatel in memory of Professor and Mrs. Charles Kuhn
Copyright
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Accession Year
2009
Object Number
2009.2
Division
Modern and Contemporary Art
Contact
am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Paul Klee, Josef Helfenstein, and Christian Rümelin, Paul Klee, catalogue raisonné, Paul-Klee Stiftung Kunstmuseum Bern (Bern, Switzerland, 1998-2004), vol. 7, p. 458, cat. no. 7514

Exhibition History

  • Paul Klee, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 04/17/1993 - 06/13/1993
  • HAA 10 Survey Course (S421): The Western Tradition: Art Since the Renaissance (Fall 10 Rotation 3), Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 11/12/2010 - 01/15/2011
  • 32Q: 1520 Art in Germany Between the Wars (Interwar and Bauhaus), Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 05/06/2015 - 07/07/2015

Subjects and Contexts

  • The Bauhaus
  • Collection Highlights

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Modern and Contemporary Art at am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu