Howling Dog, 1928
Paul Kleeexpand_more
Oil on canvasexpand_more
Gift of F. C. Schangexpand_more 56.42
On View in Gallery 376expand_more
Klee's playful depiction of a solitary dog baying at a radiant moon exemplifies the artist's reliance on a linear style of representation. Using a series of sinuous lines, Klee creates a harmonious arrangement of three distinct forms: a dog, the moon, and in an unusual but charming visualization of sound, the dog's extended howl. Placed at the center of an amorphous ground of swirling colors, the dog's howl assumes a dominant pictorial role, winding, bending on itself, hanging in the night air like a wisp of smoke, while representing a visual as well as temporal record of the emanating sound. Klee's two-dimensional composition effectively supplants traditional spatial illusion, revealing a simple, yet elegant ideogram for the painting's whimsical subject.
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Details
- Title
- Howling Dog
- Artist Life
- 1879 - 1940
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 56.42
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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