Cubism & Early Abstraction · 1919

Sumpflegende

Paul Klee 1879–1940

Sumpflegende (1919) by Paul Klee. Its palette is led by dark taupe (#3e342b, 35%) and taupe (#544d3e, 19%), with accents of warm black, oatmeal, pale muted golden cream and yellow. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, muted and warm.

Color note

After a trip to Tunisia in 1914, Klee wrote in his diary: “Color and I are one. I am a painter.” He later taught color theory at the Bauhaus.

Palette

#3e342b MG 177 dark taupe 34.6% of canvas
#544d3e MG 176 taupe 19.4% of canvas
#787062 MG 183 golden umber 14.0% of canvas
#1d110d MG 220 warm black 9.7% of canvas
#aaa595 MG 172 oatmeal 8.9% of canvas
#5c5d2c MG 193 golden olive 6.7% of canvas
#d7d0c4 MG 202 pale muted golden cream 3.8% of canvas
#7e8131 MG 045 yellow 2.9% of canvas

Color families

Brown 61%, Gray 20%, Black 14%, Green 2%, Yellow 2%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.44
Contrast: 0.53
Vividness: 0.027
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 238 cells
Hue range: 0.48
Focus: 0.03

Composition

51% of the visual weight is in the left half, 52% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.56 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 4% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 36% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1919
Medium: Oil
Size: 47.0 × 40.8 cm
Collection: Lenbachhaus, Munich

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