Paul Klee

The preliminary version of Keeper (1928), which can be seen through the sheet of paper, was simply painted over using a strong dark layer of colour.

The only real hint that the figure in Klee’s Keeper is female is in the German work’s title Tierpflegerin; the figure itself is rather androgynous. It has a thick head of hair, which Klee roughly drapes around the head in grey-brown watercolour. In its arm it holds a piglet, while the mother sow sits on her left.

The curves of the figure on the back, which are visible through the thin paper, are much more feminine. It is astonishing that Klee tolerated the transparency and reused the sheet. Rather than taking up aspects of the composition on the back, as he had in other cases, here Klee has roughly painted over it with black and brown.

In the overall composition of the Keeper, these features may seem somewhat arbitrary, yet they also contribute to the work’s unique charm.