Comedy of Birds (Vogelkom�die)

Article description

Original lithograph by Paul Klee, signed with copy pen in the lower corner. Published by Franz Seraph Hanfstaengl, Munich, 1918, for the celebrated portfolio '25 Original Lithographs of the Munich New Secession'. Sheet: 51.1 × 36.5 cm (20 × 14.25 in). A rare early print by one of the towering figures of 20th-century art, held in the permanent collections of MoMA, the Metropolitan Museum, and the Art Institute of Chicago. Paul Klee (1879 Münchenbuchsee – 1940 Muralto) was one of the most original and prolific graphic artists of the 20th century. A founding member of Der Blaue Reiter alongside Kandinsky and Franz Marc, and subsequently a master-teacher at the Bauhaus (1921–1931), Klee produced some 109 prints in total — of which the lithographs of 1918–1925 form a particularly rare and sought-after group. Klee made fewer than 50 lithographs in his lifetime, most in tiny editions; this work belongs to that early peak. The 'Comedy of Birds (Vogelkomödie)' was contributed by Klee to the portfolio '25 Original Lithographien der Münchener Neuen Sezession', published by Franz Seraph Hanfstaengl in Munich in 1918 in an edition of 50 (45 on van Gelder Zonen paper, 5 on Japan). The image, with its characteristic line-drawn bird figures and wit, is one of the finest examples of Klee's graphic work and a highly collectible museum-quality sheet. Sheet size: 51.1 × 36.5 cm. The print has undergone careful professional restoration: stains in the paper have been removed and a tear at the lower right has been expertly repaired. The image itself is fully intact and presents beautifully. A condition report is available on request.

Paul Klee – Comedy of Birds (Vogelkomödie) · Original Signed Lithograph · Munich New Secession Portfolio · 1918