Artists’ stories

Johann Heinrich Füssli — Satan défiant les puissances du ciel — Image creditsJohann Heinrich Füssli · Satan défiant les puissances du ciel · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
Johann Heinrich Füssli — « Satan défiant les puissances du ciel ».
Johann Heinrich Füssli · Satan défiant les puissances du ciel · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
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Johann Heinrich Füssli · 5 min read

Two sides of a revolt against heaven

Two drawings preserved on the sides of a single sheet give Satan’s defiance different gestures. Fuseli works on the tension of a body, a hand and a space of wash.

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Johann Heinrich Füssli — L’Enlèvement de Ganymède — Image creditsJohann Heinrich Füssli · L’Enlèvement de Ganymède · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
Johann Heinrich Füssli — « L’Enlèvement de Ganymède ».
Johann Heinrich Füssli · L’Enlèvement de Ganymède · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
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Johann Heinrich Füssli · 5 min read

Ganymede enters lithography

In 1804, Fuseli brings Ganymede into an experiment in lithography. The mythological action takes the form of moving bodies and drapery, preserved in a print in Washington.

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Johann Heinrich Füssli — Femme assise près de la fenêtre — Image creditsJohann Heinrich Füssli · Femme assise près de la fenêtre · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
Johann Heinrich Füssli — « Femme assise près de la fenêtre ».
Johann Heinrich Füssli · Femme assise près de la fenêtre · Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Henry Fuseli
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Johann Heinrich Füssli · 5 min read

The window behind a figure seen from the back

A lithograph of 1802 shows a woman turned towards a window. The back, outstretched arm and fabrics allow Fuseli to construct a presence without a frontal portrait.

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Paul Klee — Angelus Novus — Image creditsPaul Klee · Angelus Novus · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Christian Mantey ( photographer ), Kulturagent
Paul Klee — « Angelus Novus ».
Paul Klee · Angelus Novus · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Christian Mantey ( photographer ), Kulturagent
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Paul Klee · 5 min read

The angel whose destiny was changed by a small sheet of paper

Angelus Novus was a work of 1920 before it became a philosophical image. Its encounter with Walter Benjamin and the precautions taken to preserve it tell of two ways to prolong the life of a drawing.

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Paul Klee — Magie des poissons — Image creditsPaul Klee · Magie des poissons · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Paul Klee — « Magie des poissons ».
Paul Klee · Magie des poissons · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
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Paul Klee · 5 min read

The black you must scrape away to discover a world

Fish Magic brings together fish, flowers and celestial signs in a dark space. Beneath this 1925 scene, Klee arranges a real material discovery: colours appear by breaking through the black layer.

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Paul Klee — Senecio — Image creditsPaul Klee · Senecio · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Paul Klee — « Senecio ».
Paul Klee · Senecio · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
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Paul Klee · 5 min read

A face constructed from geometric shapes

Senecio transforms a face into a meeting of circles, triangles and colours. In this 1922 painting held in Basel, apparent simplicity calls for a surprisingly precise gaze.

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Paul Klee — La Machine à gazouiller — Image creditsPaul Klee · La Machine à gazouiller · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Paul Klee — « La Machine à gazouiller ».
Paul Klee · La Machine à gazouiller · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
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Paul Klee · 5 min read

A crank to make birds sing

In Twittering Machine, Klee attaches birds to an improbable device. The 1922 drawing joins technical invention with unease, while its own making already separates line from colour.

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