Content

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

1. Press release 2 2. Copyright list 5 3. Biography Johannes Itten 10 4. Biography 12 5. Walltexts 14 6. Two questions to the curator Christoph Wagner 19 7. Factsheet 20 8. Sponsors and partners 22

Attachments:

Information WALL AG Flyer, poster, education programme

Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 1

1. Press release

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

Opening times: Wednesday to Monday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., closed Tue

Organizers: Berliner Festspiele. An exhibition of the Kunstmuseum, , and the Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin. Facilitated by the Berlin Capital Cultural Fund. With the kind support of Pro Helvetia.

Curators: Monika Schäfer, Christoph Wagner

Partners: Wall AG, Dussmann, Visit Berlin, Lufthansa

Media partners: Tagesspiegel, Ex-Berliner, rbb-fernsehen, rbb-kulturradio, Flair

Press Office: Tel.: +49 (0)30 / 25486-236, fax: +49 (0)30 / 25486-235 E-mail: [email protected] Collaboration: ARTPRESS – Ute Weingarten, tel: +49 (0) 30 / 48496350 E-Mail: [email protected]

Public Relations: Ellen Clemens, tel.: +49 (0)30 / 25486-123, fax: +49 (0)30 / 25486-107 E-mail: [email protected]

Johannes Itten and Paul Klee made their mark in the history of 20th century art with theories of colour that were as important as they were conspicuous. Both proceeded from the assumption that the order of colours was logically structured as a self-contained cosmos. New sources show that both artists referred to the same intellectual sources, some of them esoteric, and inspired each other. Both developed their ideas about colour in the course of decades of reflection and work and applied them liberally in their art.

In its presentation of about 170 works – including , drawings and graphics – the exhibition takes a fresh look at two leading representatives of Classical Modernism in the German language area.

Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 2

In chronological order and grouped into eight main stages, the exhibition shows key works by Johannes Itten and Paul Klee, the focus being on their artistic use of colour. In each case different aspects are brought to the fore, such as colour and esotericism, colour aura, colour harmony, colour and abstraction, colour and nature, division of colour.

For the first time it can be shown that not only did Klee inspire Itten, but Itten also inspired Klee, and that both drew on common sources. The lives and careers of these two natives of the canton of Bern intersected on several occasions: While Johannes Itten received his first artistic encouragement from Paul Klee's father, Paul Klee’s appointment to the was largely due to Johannes Itten. Both artists began their lifelong preoccupation with questions of the theory of colour and the ordering of the colour cosmos at almost the same time, in 1914/1915: Klee during his trip to Tunisia, Itten under the impression of the theory of colour developed by Adolf Hölzel in . Both artists observed each other’s work over years at a time and also swapped individual works.

All the more surprising, one might think, that Johannes Itten and Paul Klee have never before had an exhibition devoted to just the two of them. Biographical asymmetries may be responsible for this: Klee joined the Weimar Bauhaus in 1921 and Itten left it in 1923, not long afterwards. Itten did not return to until 1938. Paul Klee died in 1940, while Johannes Itten was to outlive him by more than twenty- five years. Itten’s monumental publication on the art of colour only appeared in 1961, and for a long time thereafter little was known about the development of Itten’s reflections on colour over the preceding decades. This situation has been changed by the discovery of new sources among the posthumous effects of Johannes Itten, thus enabling the chronology and the stages of his ideas on colour to be reconstructed on the basis of the brilliantly coloured pages of his diary.

1913 Paul Klee participated in the exhibition “Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon”. The book of pictures III of “Der Sturm” was dedicated to Paul Klee in 1918. Both exhibited at Herwarth Walden’s gallery “Der Sturm” in the Berlin of the 1920s. Between 1926 and 1934 Johannes Itten ran his art school in Berlin, since 1929 the socalled "Itten- school" at 14 Konstanzerstrasse in Berlin – another reason for mounting the exhibition in Berlin.

Catalogue Itten - Klee. Kosmos Farbe Publishing company: Schnell and Steiner GmbH, Regensburg Publisher: Christoph Wagner, Monika Schäfer, Matthias Frehner, Gereon Sievernich Soft-cover, German, 21,8 x 27 cm, 384 pages ISBN: 978-3-7954-2646-0 Trade edition: 34,95 € Museum edition: 20,00 €

Admission: 9 € / reduced 7 € Groups (of 5 or more persons) p.p. 7 € School and students groups (aged 16 or over 5 or more persons) p.p. 7 € Admission free for children up to the age of 16 Online-tickets: www.gropiusbau.de Combitickets at a reduced price are available at the box office

Audio guide: 4 €

Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 3

Guided tours: Public guided tours Sundays at 3 p.m. 3 € per person plus 7 € admission per person

Tour bookings for groups and school classes: Groups: Guided tours (60 min.) 60 € plus 7 € admission per person Guided tours for school classes and student groups (60 min.) 45 € plus 5 € admission per person

An education programme for children is accompanying the exhibition. Public workshops, up to the age of 5 years, no fee: Every Sunday at 1 p.m.: 28 April, 05 May, 19 May, 02 June and 09 June 2013

Further information: www.gropiusbau.de/schuelerprogramm

Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 4

2. Copyright list

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

Bitte beachten Sie die Bildlegenden. Das Bildmaterial dient ausschließlich zur aktuellen redaktionellen Berichterstattung über die Ausstellung „Kosmos Farbe. Itten-Klee“ (25.04. – 29.07.2013) im Martin- Gropius-Bau. Die Berichterstattung von Text und Bild muss im Verhältnis 1:1 stehen, dann ist das Bildmaterial für 5 Bilder kostenfrei. Die Bilder dürfen nicht beschnitten, überdruckt oder manipuliert werden. Bitte vermerken Sie bei der Veröffentlichung die Angaben der Bildlegende. Die Rechte für Titelbildnutzungen und Bildstrecken sind bei dem jeweiligen Rechteinhaber direkt einzuholen und können kostenpflichtig sein. Wir bitten um Zusendung von 2 Belegexemplaren an die oben genannte Adresse.

Please observe the copyright. All image material is to be used solely for editorial coverage of the current exhibition “Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee” (25.04. – 29.07.2013) in the Martin-Gropius-Bau. Please always mention the name of the artist, the work title and the copyright in the caption. The images must not be altered in any way, such as being cropped or printed over. The rights of use for title-page photos or photo spreads are to be obtained directly from the respective copyright holder. The ratio of text to image in the coverage should be 1:1, in which case there will be no charge for the use of 5 photos. Please send us 2 copies of your article to the address mentioned above.

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Titel / Bildunterschrift 01_Itten_Begegnung.jpg

Johannes Itten

Begegnung, 1916 Öl auf Leinwand, 105 x 80 cm

Kunsthaus Zürich © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013

Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 5

02_Itten_Turm.jpg

Johannes Itten

Turm des Feuers (Rekonstruktion) , 1920 /1998 Holz, Metall, Glas, Blei, Motor und Zahnrad, 395 x 140 x 140 cm.

Kunstmuseum Bern, Johannes Itten-Stiftung, Bern Schenkung des Vereins "Swiss made.", der Schweiz. Stiftung Pro Helvetia und des Bundesamtes für Kultur © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013

03_Itten_Fest.jpg

Johannes Itten

Ländliches Fest, 1917 Öl auf Leinwand, 142,2 x 102 cm

Kunstmuseum Bern, Leihgabe © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013

04_Itten_Vorfruehling.jpg

Johannes Itten

Vorfrühling , 1966 Öl auf Leinwand, 120 x 120 cm.

Privatbesitz © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013 05_Itten_Velum.jpg

Johannes Itten

Gesamtkomposition des Velum, 1938 Bleistift und Aquarell auf Papier 180 x 95 cm

Privatbesitz © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013

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06_Itten_Concerto.jpg

Johannes Itten Concerto grosso, 1959 Öl auf Leinwand 140 x 100 cm

Privatbesitz © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013

07_Itten_Dorf.jpg

Johannes Itten

Dorf im Winter, 1965 Aquarell auf Papier 29,8 x 39,8 cm

Privatbesitz © VG Bild-Kunst, 2013 08_Itten_Malerkittel.jpg

Johannes Itten im Malerkittel mit dem Goldenen Schnitt-Zirkel und Farbstern, Weimar 1920/21.

Itten-Archiv Zürich Foto: Paula Stockmar

09_Klee_Legende.jpg

Paul Klee

Legende vom Nil , 1937, 215 Pastell auf Baumwolle auf Kleisterfarbe auf Jute auf Keilrahmen, 69 x 61 cm.

Hermann und Margrit Rupf-Stiftung, Kunstmuseum Bern

10_Klee_Blitz.jpg

Paul Klee

Vor dem Blitz, 1923, 150 Aquarell und Bleistift auf Papier, oben und unten Randstreifen mit Gouache, Aquarell und Feder auf Karton, 28 x 31,5 cm.

Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel

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11_Klee_Park.jpg

Paul Klee Labyrinthischer Park, 1939, 270 Aquarell und Bleistift auf Papier auf Karton 20,9 x 29,7 cm

Privatbesitz Schweiz, Depositum im Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern

12_Klee_Flotille.jpg

Paul Klee

Flotille am kalten Morgen, 1927, 316 Aquarell, teilweise gespritzt, und Gouache auf schwarzer Grundierung auf Papier, mit Gouache und Feder eingefasst, auf Karton 36,5 x 52,2 cm

Kunstmuseum Bern, Vermächtnis Alexander Müllegg 13_Klee_Emacht.jpg

Paul Klee

Emacht, 1932, 68 Ölfarbe auf Baumwolle auf Keilrahmen 50 x 64 cm

Kunstmuseum Bern, Schenkung Livia Klee

14_Klee_Ort.jpg

Paul Klee

Nördlicher Ort, 1923, 140 Aquarell auf Papier, zerschnitten und neu kombiniert, auf Karton 23,5 x 36,5 cm

Kunstmuseum Bern, Stiftung Othmar Huber, Bern, Schenkung Helga und Rolf Marti, Wabern

15_Klee_pflanzen.jpg

Paul Klee

Nach Regeln zu pflanzen, 1935, 91 Aquarell, teilweise gespritzt, auf Papier auf Karton 25,8 x 36,9 cm

Hermann und Margrit Rupf-Stiftung, Kunstmuseum Bern

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16_Klee_Bildnis.jpg

Paul Klee

Bildnis Frau Gl., 1929, 39 Aquarell und Feder auf Papier, aufgezogen auf Karton 45,7 x 30,5 cm

Kunstmuseum Basel, Kupferstichkabinett, Schenkung der Klee- Gesellschaft, Bern 1948

17_Klee_Portraet.jpg

Paul Klee mit der Katze Fripouille, Possenhofen,1921. Vor sich die Ölfarbezeichnung "Allerseelen-Bild", 1921, 113.

Fotograf: Felix Klee mit Apparat Vater. Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern, Schenkung Familie Klee © Copyright: Klee-Nachlassverwaltung, Bern

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3. Biography Johannes Itten

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

1888 Born 11 November in Südern-Linden (Bernese highlands)

1909–1910 / 1912–1913 Studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in

1911 First group show at Kunstmuseum Bern

1912 Toured Europe (i.e. Cologne, Paris), visited exhibitions and was fascinated by Cézanne's work

1913–1916 Studied with Adolf Hölzel at the Academy of the Arts, Stuttgart Began to realise non-representational compositions and gave lessons

1916 One-man-show at the gallery Der Sturm , Berlin

1916–1919 Ran a private art academy in Started concern himself with theosophy and mysticism Developed his comprehensive form and colour theory

1919 Married Hildegard Anbelang

1919–1923 Taught at the Bauhaus in Weimar and set up a foundation course Realised abstract and figurative paintings, sculptures and architectural designs

1923–1926 Lived as a member of the Mazdaznan Temple community in Herrliberg Established the Ontos-Werkstätten für Handweberei und Teppichknüpferei ( Ontos-Workshop for hand loom weaving and carpet tufting ) Also taught art courses at the art school there

1926 From 1926 on, he gave art classes at his “Moderne Kunstschule Berlin” at different locations, training painters, graphic artists, photographers and architects

1928 Designed the shop area of Erich Hamann's Chocolate factory in Brandenburgische Straße 17, Berlin (Wilmersdorf) ______Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 10

1929 The Itten-Schule Berlin opened in Konstanzer Straße 14 (Wilmersdorf)

1932 Became the head of the newly founded Höhere Fachschule für Textile Flächenkunst, (Advanced Vocational School for Textile Art) of the City of Krefeld

1934 Closure of Itten's school in Berlin

1937 Works by Itten included in the “” exhibition organised by the Nazis

1938 Closure of the school in Krefeld, and subsequent emigration to Holland

1938–1953 Served as director of the Kunstgewerbemuseum (museum of applied arts) and Kunstgewerbeschule (school of applied arts) in Zurich

1939 Married Anneliese Schlösser

1943–1960 Served as director of the Textilfachschule der Seidenindustriegesellschaft, Zurich (silk industry vocational school)

1948 One-man-show in New York

1949–1956 Established and served as director of the Rietberg Museum, Zurich

1957 One-man-show at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam

1961 Publication of Kunst der Farbe (The Art of Color)

1964 Retrospective at Kunsthaus Zurich

1966 Represented Switzerland at the 33rd Venice Biennale

1967 Johannes Itten died on 25 March in Zurich

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4. Biography Paul Klee

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

1879 Born on 18 December in Münchenbuchsee near Bern

1898–1899 Relocated to Munich. Not admitted to the academy of art due to a lack of practise in figurative drawing. Took lessons at Heinrich Knirr's Zeichenschule (private drawing school)

1900–1901 Studied briefly with Franz von Stuck at the Kunstakademie (academy of the arts) in Munich and then dropped out

1902–1905 Returned to Bern Continued teaching himself by practising, visiting museums, and spending a short period of time in Paris

1906 Participated in his first group show (Jahresausstellung der Münchener Secession) Married Lily Stumpf. Relocated to Munich

1907–1908 Lived as an artist and househusband while continuing to teach himself

1909 Viewed works by Cézanne in Munich and thereafter considered the painter to be his “instructor par excellence”

1910 One-man-show at Kunstmuseum Bern

1911 Became acquainted with the Blaue Reiter group of artists

1912 Participated in the second Blauen Reiter exhibition Visited Robert Delaunay in Paris

1913 Participated in the Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon exhibition organised by Herwarth Walden (of the gallery Der Sturm )

1914 Travelled to Tunisia with Louis Moilliet and August Macke

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Conducted artistic research into colour 1916–1918 Conscripted at the recruits' depot at Landshut in Niederbayern

1920 Large-scale one-man-show in Munich, three monographs being released

1921 Began teaching at the Bauhaus in Weimar Further development of a colour theory

1924 Exhibition in New York On the initiative of Galka Scheyer established an artists' group for showing work together, Die Blaue Vier : with , and Alexej von Jawlensky

1925 Relocated together with the Bauhaus to Dessau

1928 Travelled extensively in Egypt where he encountered considerable ideas for how colour can be used

1930–1932 Left the Bauhaus and began to teach at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf

1933 Discharged from his job in Düsseldorf under pressure from the Nazis Returned to Bern

1935–1936 Retrospective at the Kunsthalle Bern Became serious ill (scleroderma)

1937 Works by Paul Klee included in the “Degenerate Art” exhibition organised by the Nazis

1939 The most productive year of his career, realising 1253 works of art

1940 Retrospective at Kunsthaus Zürich Paul Klee died without fulfilling his wish for Swiss citizenship in Locarno on 29 June

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5. Walltexts

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

Johannes Itten and Paul Klee made their marks on the history of 20 th century art with their important theories about colour. Both artists work revolve around the idea that colour order follows its own rules, in a self-contained cosmos. Both were inspired by the same history of ideas, to a certain extent esoteric ideas, and mutually inspired each other. Both, developed their colour theories through decades of reflection and work, which also had considerable implications on their art.

Klee was born in Bern and Itten came from Bernese highlands; their paths often crossed: Paul Klee’s father provided Johannes Itten with initial artistic impulses; conversely, Klee’s appointment to the Weimar Bauhaus was largely a result of Itten’s encouragement.

Both artists were aware of each other’s artistic work and exchanged artworks as well as theoretical ideas. Both began their lifelong investigation into colour around 1914/1915: Itten was influenced by Adolf Hölzel’s colour theory which he encountered in Stuttgart, while Klee was effected by his travels in Tunisia. Klee’s colour theory first manifested itself at the Bauhaus in 1922. Itten developed his colour theory further at the Itten-Schule which he founded in Berlin. It was closed by the Nazis in 1934.

The exhibition is divided chronologically into eight stages grouped around key works by Itten as well as by Klee, providing examples of each artist's involvement with the subject of colour.

1. Academy and Nature Studies

Among the formative experiences in Itten’s youth were indelible impressions of nature. His early oeuvre contained landscape pictures in which exploration of architectonic principles are evident from the outset. Images often emerged out of a clearly defined grid of supporting lines, as in the painting Haus mit Treppe (Building with Staircase) from 1912.

His first large format oil painting, Vorfrühling an der Rhône (Early Spring on the Rhône) reveals his preoccupation with post-impressionist use of colour, particularly van Gogh and Hodler. Oddly, his time at the Geneva Academy had remarkably little impact on his artwork. Itten’s visit to the Sonderbund exhibition in Cologne in May 1912 lead to an in-depth exploration of Cézanne’s painting: probably the most complex example of this is Itten’s Barmherziger Samariter (The Good Samaritan) of 1915.

Very early landscape studies and numerous journal entries show that for Klee, too, nature was both a refuge and a retreat. Additionally, drawings bear witness to Klee’s love of the grotesque and the comical which is evident in many early works, such as Weib und Tier (Woman and Animal). As early as 1902, during his travels in Italy, Klee realised that the ______Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 14

depiction of architectural motifs was of profound importance to his art. His path from simple portrayals of nature to the architectonic structuring of representational elements in a composition is evident in works such as the drawing Aus dem Daehlhoelzli (View from Daehlhoelzli) , 1898 and the watercolour Haus in der Schlucht (House in the Ravine) , 1913, in which his use of colour becomes, increasingly, a means unto itself.

2. Colour Theory

After studying at the Stuttgart Academy, Itten remained true to Adolf Hölzel’s theory of colour contrasts in his own colour theory. At the same time, however, he vastly expanded the latter’s theory: whereas Hölzel followed Goethe’s colour wheel, Itten preferred Philipp Otto Runge’s cosmological concept of the colour sphere. Within an ideological, universal context of colour theory, Itten tried to integrate such elements as theosophical and astrological principles of organising colour.

Basing his ideas on theosophical notions of colour aura, Itten believed in the existence of different types of colour perception. In 1921, Itten published his theoretical colour model of the “colour sphere” - a colour star-shape that could be folded to make a globe, in the almanac, Utopia . He then brought the results of his work on colour over decades together in his book “The Art of Color” (sic) in 1961. He founded a school, the Itten-Schule in Berlin in 1926 (since 1929 at Konstanzer Straße 14), where he continued to develop his concepts of colour theory and education. The school was closed under pressure from the Nazis in 1934; it is considered to have been one of the most influential art schools of the Modern era.

Klee also undertook a comprehensive systemisation of the cosmos of colour with a grey core at the centre of a colour sphere. The two poles are white and black respectively, while the equator is made up of the range of pure colours and the rest, a mixture of these tones. Klee’s colour cosmos is akin to Runge’s colour sphere, which also has a grey core. Klee expanded on Runge’s ideas by reinterpreting them: he perceived his colour system to be the result of dynamic processes.

3. The Discovery of Colour

Klee began to work with colour in a different manner on his journey to Tunisia in 1914, becoming more significant in his art: “Colour has taken possession of me; no longer do I have to chase after it. I know that it has a hold on me forever. That is the significance of this blessed moment. Colour and I are one. I am a painter.” In Tunisia, Klee discovered a less constrained way of using colour, attaining a greater level of abstraction. Yet the famous quote from his journal “Colour has taken possession of me” was actually written years later at the Bauhaus, in 1922.

In contrast, thanks to his interest in colour theory, Itten had already created completely abstract compositions such as Horizontal-Vertikal (Horizontal-Vertical) and Tiefenstufen (Gradations of Depth) by 1915. Both paintings are milestones in early, purely abstract 20 th century art. Itten’s paintings show the extent to which he brought mathematical proportions of organised colour planes together with notions of a colour system. Each of these pictures is exemplary. In Begegnung (Encounter) Itten composed a horizontal structure of stripes in brilliant colours which burst into a dynamic double spiral moving towards the centre of the composition.

4. Rationalising Colour

During his years at the Bauhaus from autumn 1921, Klee thoroughly explored the laws of colour theory and experimented with colour tones and scales of values. Whereas in the ______Press kit: Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee page 15

natural world transitions from light to dark occur smoothly with no obvious steps, Klee was able to organise light and dark in measurable, clear gradations. This is clear, for instance, in the painting Wachstum der Nachtpflanzen (Growth of Nocturnal Flowers) . Plant-like forms appear to grow slowly out of an indefinite, dark background. Klee referred to light and dark colours being arranged according to tone as “fugues”, with reference to the musical structures of the fugue, in which tonal colour gradations represented the temporal dimension of development and progression.

In the watercolour Vor dem Blitz (Before Lightning strikes) motion is implied by the use of colour gradations and arrows. In many of his works from the 1920s, Klee lead the viewer to imaginary places with enigmatic constructions, rock formations, animals and symbols. These often represented gardens or landscapes without temporal nor spatial reference points and hence seem to originate in a dream or fantasy world, such as Vogel Pep (Pep the Bird), Tor im Garten (Garden Gate) and Indischer Blumengarten (Indian flower garden) . Other works such as Nördlicher Ort (A Northern Place) and Architektur () deal with the essential significance of the architectonic in the rationalisation of Klee’s artist approach. Itten had already created abstract colour compositions in Stuttgart, which he transferred to abstract designs for carpets and then, finally, picked up on again in his late work.

5. Colour between Abstraction and Realism

During his three year stay at the Bauhaus between 1919 and 1922 Itten returned to the figurative-representational phase of previous periods in his oeuvre. Both philosophical and conceptual issues in the artistic training of a “new humanity” come to the fore.

Paintings like Der Berg (The Mountain) 1929/30 show how spontaneously Itten reacted to the possibilities presented by Japanese painting techniques using a brush and ink, which he added to the curriculum at his school in Berlin from 1928. He then integrated these East Asian techniques of sketching with ink into his own method of using colour in a composition.

Itten's teaching work at the School for Textile Art and Design in Krefeld (1932 -1938) also left its mark on his painting. One milestone painting realised during this period, Vögel am Meer (Birds at the lake) , shows how intrinsic the interaction between painting colour and figuration were as ornamentation in Itten's work. The most intimate yet monumental integration of ornament and representation in one of his paintings was produced early in the summer of 1938, when he created his so-called Velum for the stairwell of the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. Unfortunately, this piece now only exists as a sketch.

In contrast to Itten, Klee experimented with abstract-geometrical compositions in colour while at the Bauhaus and continued to do so later, in Düsseldorf. His interest in geometry and construction manifested itself in numerous planimetrical sketches as well as completed works such as Segelnde Stadt (Sailing city) . Spatial work defying gravity, flying and balance are recurring themes in Klee's oeuvre. Paintings such as Emacht are compositions in which colour and form join to relay something akin to a piece of architecture, hinting at a depiction of something that could exist in reality.

6. The Esoteric Nature of Colour

Itten illustrated a quote from O. Z. A. Hanish, founder of the Mazdaznan movement, for the Bauhaus portfolio in 1921: “Greetings and hail to the hearts…,” programmatically intertwining calligraphy, colour and esoteric ideology. By bringing esoteric philosophy together with the universal language of art, Itten strived to fulfil ' battle cry not merely to “train artists” at the Bauhaus but instead “to train a new kind of humanity” there.

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Another of his calligraphed works illustrates one of the German mystic, Jakob Boehme's mottos: “Breathe in, breathe out”, which Itten saw as echoing the breathing techniques of the Mazdaznan movement. In the 1920s, elements of Itten's philosophy came to the fore in his art as never before nor afterwards. During this period, he spent many longer periods of time at the Mazdaznan community at Herrliberg, near the lake in Zurich. The Madzaznan sect was founded in Chicago in 1890 as a reformed version of Zoroastrianism. The denomination, which also had racist elements to its creed, influenced the development of the Lebensreform movement in Germany. In 1935, the Nazis forbid Mazdaznan.

Klee's Seiltänzer (Wire Dancer) of 1923 appears to portray tightrope artistry as a balancing act while also alluding to the delicate balance between intuition and rationality. Klee's relationship to the esoteric world was complex: in many of his works he reacted to esoteric ideas that were then en vogue , such as Die Heilige vom innern Licht (The Saint of inner light) or Narretei (Buffoonery) . At the same time, Klee usually maintained a sense of irony and distanced himself from the doctrines promising salvation. Nonetheless, some esoteric ideas found their way into his theory of art. This is especially the case in Klee's spiritual relationship to numbers based on Neo-Pythagorean thought. In his rechnender Greis (old Man Calculating) Klee appears to have reflected this fondness for numbers with a degree of self-deprecation. On his departure from the Bauhaus, he gave Itten a gift: his work-on-paper entitled Reisende Vögel (Migrating birds) .

7. Autonomy for Artistic Means

Klee began to lend more painterliness and a new autonomy to his art in the : in works such as Scherben-Stilleben (Still-life with shards) and Enzianisches Stilleben (Gentianic still- life) forms and colour sometimes appear to contrast, while at others blending in with other elements of the composition. Here, the motif is only of importance in as much as it provides a title. Klee increasingly used transparency to bring both his painterly and natural processes to the fore. An example of this is his watercolour leidende Frucht (suffering fruit) in which a pear-shaped fruit appears flushed with fever. In another watercolour, nach Regeln zu pflanzen (planting according to rules) he divided the coloured space in the composition rhythmically using lines. In another watercolour, Diana im Herbstwind (Diana in the Autumn Wind), the layered shapes spread out all over the composition seem to teeter while hatching fans out in all imaginable directions, relaying the impression of movement during a storm.

All in all, the issue of systemising colour in Klee's work gives way to increased expressivity through the effect of colour. Klee reverted to a square-format composition in his Legende vom Nil (Nile legend) into squares, reminiscent of his work in the 1920s and evoking memories of his trip to Egypt. Fish, plants and a boot carrying crew appear as abstract symbols, exemplary for Klee's interest in typography and different sign systems. Brown symbols contrast vividly with luminous blues and greens in the background, hinting at the path Klee’s work took towards the end of his life.

8. Elementarisation and Order of Colour

In his later works, Klee experimented in a radical new way with vibrant surfaces of colour that were not representational, but were simply a means in themselves. He often applied paint in an intentionally broad-brushed manner; in colours ranging from earth tones to luminous primary tones. In paintings such as Zum Jägerbaum (At the Hunters’ Tree), eine Henne am Abend (an Evening Hen) , Vollmond im Gebirge (Full moon in the mountains) and in Behandlung (treatment), all realised between 1939-1940, colour functions as a free-flowing counterpoint to strong linear elements.

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During the last two decades of Itten's career, he delved more specifically into understanding “the art of colour” and returned to realising utterly abstract paintings. His geometric-abstract pieces mark a return to the abstraction of his periods in Stuttgart and Vienna in works such as Gelb-Orange-Rot (Yellow-Orange-Red) . Two fundamental aesthetic issues prominently manifested themselves: analysis of colour contrasts and compositions in which a synthesis of different colours results in overall harmony. In paintings such as Dreiklang-Modulation (Three-tone modulation) , Itten limited his choice of shades to harmonising, single colour tones. In other works, such as Festlich (Festive), he used a broad palette incorporating all manner of colours, while, in contrast, works like Adieu (Farewell) , focus the viewer's eye on the effect of light and dark shades of colours by setting light colours against a dark background so they shine. In Concerto Grosso , colours used are as radiant as if they were illuminated from behind. Itten believed that there are four basic types of colour which he referred to in terms of the four seasons; this idea became one of the central concepts of his colour theory, which had widespread impact. These groups of colours were the inspiration for Itten's series dealing with the four seasons Spring, Summer , Autumn and Winter .

Tower of Light / Tower of Fire

The first and most ambitious work of art Johannes Itten realised after joining the Bauhaus faculty in Weimar was Turm des Lichtes / Turm des Feuers (Tower of Light / Tower of Fire) . The title of this sculptural piece, which no longer exists in its original form, was added decades after completion. A reconstruction of the original model made by Johannes Itten in Weimar in 1920 features in the exhibition. Period sources attest to the fact that the title of this sculpture was originally Turm des Lichtes .

Itten dealt with the idea of movement by using monumental, three-dimensional spiral shapes. This tower was conceived as a highly symbolic form, sculptural and architectonic, and that was crucial to this “Weltanschauungskunstwerk” (work of art depicting his philosophy/beliefs) and “Gedankenarchitektur“ (thought architecture): “My tower is a symbol of light / truth / ringing bells to make music“. In the original, small bells were visible in the upper registers.

Itten's sketches show that he based the tower on specific mathematical proportions calculated for the purpose. Itten divided his cosmos of colour into twelve shades with spherically curved coloured glass forms as a universal cosmic symbol for world unity. Above the twelve shades of colour, Itten planned an upward path from minerals to plants, animals, humans up to the sun, making reference to the astrological constellations of the zodiac and the four elements.

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6. Two questions to the curator Christoph Wagner

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

Mr. Wagner, now that the works of Johannes Itten and Paul Klee have become so popular, is there really anything new to discover? I myself was surprised that these exponents of Classical Modernism had never had an exhibition devoted to just the two of them, although the points of contact and parallels are plain to see. The lives and careers of the two artists intersected on several occasions. Itten received his first artistic inspiration from Paul Klee’s father, while Johannes Itten played a key role in Klee’s being invited to join the Weimar Bauhaus.

Johannes Itten and Paul Klee are notable in the history of 20th century art for theories of colour that were as important as they were conspicuous. Is the focus of the exhibition on theory? No. The good thing about the art of both Klee and Itten is that theory and practice are not so easy to separate. The feast for the eyes that the two painters offer in their paintings and watercolours acquires a new depth when one understands the intellectual basis on which they arose. Both in the catalogue and in the exhibition we shall be presenting a lot of new information about Itten’s and Klee’s artistic reflections on colour. There is much that is new to be discovered when one begins to ask how the two artists developed and modified their theories of colour over the decades. The aspects examined include the relations between colour and esotericism; the aura and harmony of colour; colour and abstraction; and colour and nature are all considered. Then we can return to the works themselves, which are richly represented in the exhibition.

Interviewer: Monika Schäfer

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7. Factsheet

Cosmos of Colour. Itten-Klee 25 April to 29 July 2013

Opening times: Wednesday to Monday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., closed Tue

Organizer: Berliner Festspiele. An exhibition of the Kunstmuseum, Bern, and the Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin. Facilitated by the Berlin Capital Cultural Fund. With the kind support of Pro Helvetia.

Curators: Monika Schäfer, Christoph Wagner

Partners: Wall AG, Dussmann, Visit Berlin, Lufthansa

Media partners: Tagesspiegel, Exberliner, rbb-fernsehen, rbb-kulturradio, Flair

Press Office: Tel.: +49 (0)30 / 25486-236, fax: +49 (0)30 / 25486-235 E-mail: [email protected] Collaboration: ART PRESS – Ute Weingarten, tel: +49 (0) 30 / 48496350 E-Mail: [email protected]

Public Relations: Ellen Clemens, tel.: +49 (0)30 / 25486-123, fax: +49 (0)30 / 25486-107 E-mail: [email protected]

Catalogue Itten - Klee. Kosmos Farbe Publishing company: Schnell and Steiner GmbH, Regensburg Publisher: Christoph Wagner, Monika Schäfer, Matthias Frehner, Gereon Sievernich Soft-cover, German, 21,8 x 27 cm, 384 pages ISBN: 978-3-7954-2646-0 Trade edition: 34,95 € Museum edition: 20,00 €

Admission: 9 € / reduced 7 € Groups (of 5 or more persons) p.p. 7 € School and students groups (aged 16 or over 5 or more persons) p.p. 7 € Admission free for children up to the age of 16

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Online-tickets: www.gropiusbau.de Combitickets at a reduced price are available at the box office

Audio guide: 4 €

Guided tours: Public guided tours Sundays at 3 p.m. 3 € per person plus 7 € admission per person

Tour bookings for groups and school classes: Groups: Guided tours (60 min.) 60 € plus 7 € admission per person Guided tours for school classes and student groups (60 min.) 45 € plus 5 € admission per person A programme for children is accompanying the exhibition.

Public workshops: Sundays at 1 p.m.: 28.04., 05.05., 19.05., 02.06. and 09.06.2013

Further information: www.gropiusbau.de/schuelerprogramm

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8. Sponsors and partners

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