Digital Guide

Paul Klee

Park Near Lu.

Öl- und Kleisterfarbe auf Papier auf Jute; originale Rahmenleisten , 100 x 70 cm

Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern

54948

Master’s students in museum studies at the University of Neuchâtel have designed the interactive exhibition in the Creaviva children’s museum. They present a room-size game board inspired by Klee’s “Park Near Lu.” of 1938. Like life-size pieces, visitors engage with tasks at six interactive stations to learn about Klee’s fascinating view of nature. As soon as the dice fall at the starting point, a journey of discovery begins on a winding path through this game of the four seasons.

Information about the interactive exhibition at the Kindermuseum Creaviva

About the Work

It is likely that Paul Klee conceived “Park Near Lu.” as an autumn scene. The colors evoke memories of a deciduous forest in autumn. Although the black likes resemble trees, bushes, or branches, they do not have any leaves. The lines strive upward, suggesting growth. Some of the lines form shapes reminiscent of dancing stick figures. Beautiful plants grow in the middle. The “Lu” in “Park Near Lu.” likely stands for Luzerne, but Klee did not represent a specific park here. Rather, he was concerned with the idea of a park in the fall and the sensory impressions associated with it.

Learn More: The Seasons

In nature, change is probably most vividly seen in the seasons. The cold of winter, when the seemingly dead plant and animal worlds “sleep”; the awakening of spring, with its first blossoms and the animals’ urge to mate; the lush growth and warmth of summer; and, finally, the abundant harvest of fall and its distinct colour palette. Since time immemorial, the annual changing of the seasons has been interpreted as meaningful: Winter stands for death and passing while spring represents youth and awakening.