Paul Klee: Masterpieces of the Djerassi Collection

by Paul Klee

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Editorial Reviews

Paul Klee, best known for his mastery of colour and semi-abstract patchwork paintings of squares, completed more than 10,000 paintings, drawings and etchings during his lifetime. His work is difficult to classify but widely admired and highly sought after. Carl Djerassi, scientist, novelist, philanthropist, most famous for inventing the birth control pill, was a great fan of Klee and amassed an important private collection of his work. This catalogue reproduces highlights from Djerassi's collection, now owned by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, including full-colour images of nearly 100 works. These drawings, sketches, gouache and watercolours reflect of whole of Klee's short but prolific career. The text includes background and critical commentary from noted Klee experts. In addition, an interview with Djerassi reveals his artistic endeavours and passion for Klee.

Customer Reviews

An intimate look at the art of a great artist, 2008-10-27
by Claude Reich (Florianopolis, Brazil and Paris, France)

This book is the catalogue for a 2002 exhibition of a private collection exclusively devoted to Paul Klee's works, a collection that was built over 40 years by a Vienna-born Californian collector, Doctor Carl Djerassi, who pledged most of it to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. The bulk of the collection is formed by a wonderful series of prints, drawings and watercolors, complemented by a few paintings. The book starts with some essays describing how the collection was formed and how the collector's passion was born. The interview of Djerassi is particularly interesting to understand the psyche of a passionate art collector.

The illustrations of some 80 works that follow are good but not outstanding and give a fair idea of Klee's creative power. Do not expect a full retrospective of the artist's career, though; this is not the aim of this book.