Paintings: Yven Klein's Blue Monochrome (Essay Sample)

Yven Klein's Blue Monochrome
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Yven Klein's Blue Monochrome
Introduction
Understanding art can be done by analyzing the achievements of individuals who have left a legacy in the industry. This essay is dedicated to an analysis of the works of Yven Klein, his dedication to the industry and his achievements through his most revered work; the Blue Monochrome. The development of art and the changes incorporated therein relies heavily on dedicated individuals who are not afraid of following their passion in art and expressing their emotions and intentions in art and design.
Body
Yves Klein was born in 1928 during the era of the great depression. Klein became a force to reckon with in the art industry after the post war European art (Yveskleinarchives.org, 2014). He achieved a lot in the art industry as he pioneered the performance art and also is considered the forerunner of the pop art and minimal art. From an artistic point of view, "the legacy of an artist can be measured and interpreted in terms of achievements, positive influences as well as the accomplishments of the artists during their lifespan" (Yveskleinarchives.org, 2014). This statement holds true for Klein. During his time, he had various influences which impacted his audience as well as co-workers and artists in the industry alike.
Klein was sired by parents who were both painters. As a result, their careers had great influence on the path that their son took later in life. Like any other skill, art cannot only be emulated but also taught. However, when the two ingredients are combined together, the learner has the opportunity of understanding how to manipulate the art to rhyme with their passion, thoughts and desires. This was the case for Klein. The father utilized the post-impressionist style of painting while, on the other hand, the mother was well known as a leading figure in art informel. She was also a member of the Paris abstract movement (Begde, 1996). "During his early schooling years, Klein practiced judo and it was not until he made friends with Arman Fernandez and Claude Pascal that he started to focus on painting" (Raymond and Klein et al., 2009). To him, this was not a new skill as he had seen his parents practice the work for a long time. One day, as the young men lay on the beach and beheld the beauty of nature, they started dividing the world to themselves. Claude chose words, gathering to himself the safety of plants; Armin chose the earth taking charge of the animal kingdom, while Yves took the sky; the space surrounding the earth and defined its realm. "This division was a resemblance of the Greek gods Zeus, Poseidon, and hades”(Perlein and Klein et al., 2000).
It was from this that Yves blue theme originated which he continually signed to his works. "With this famous symbolic gesture of signing the sky, Klein had foreseen, as in a reverie, the thrust of his art from that time onwards—a quest to reach the far side of the infinite”(Segal, 1989). His works depict his claims of the blue kingdom. He started painting the monochrome blue panels in 1955. However, there is a clear distinction of the blue he uses and the sky blue. His works are not pallid blue as compared to the daytime blue sky. There is a similarity of his works and the sky blue hovering cloud that covers Paris at night (this is especially during the summer time nights when the energy from the day resonates in the atmosphere). "In place of the stars, Klein compares the headlights of the street and presents them as sparks descending from the sky" (Raymond and Klein et al., 2009). The compression of the monochromes into a single hue makes them possess a van Gogh starry night kinetic form of energy. Despite this, the author has a variety of painting works ranging from gold and pink. However, despite this, the prevalence of blue occurs and depicts that the artist is passionate about one thing; his mystery kingdom of the sky of which he has no control over. He provides an analysis of different mystic beauty in his works and this conjures an understanding of the intertwined passion that the author has towards his work. Unlike oral or written literature that is convincing to the readers, art is more sophisticated with an inclusion of the thoughts and emotions of the artists. This brings out the authenticity and originality of a piece of which is highly visible in the works of Yves. During his works, he staged a series of events which resembled conspicuous design while at the same time he rejected and was opposed to conventional ideas to implant in his paintings. It was not until 1958 that he presented an empty gallery (Besant, 1971). He was an author and artist of a unique nature and presented his ideas in a manner indescribable to man. The ability to sell nonexistent works of art as well as fake newspapers makes him a legend in this field.
Success in art depends on the ability of the artist to be unique and deliver authentic works to his viewers. This was the case for Yves. One of the main reasons why this artist stood out of the cloud was his belief. To him, painting and sculpture were means to an end; a greater end. "My works are only the ashes of my art," he proclaimed in 1960 (Weitemeier, 2005). Changing art was a deliberate move he was undertaking with the final goal of transforming the world. He pictured himself as a shaman; ready to transform the mind, body and soul of his subjects. His quest and need to transform the industry and the world in general was formidable. He was an influential man who many considered a genius. This can also be attributed to his portraying and believing to be one; "I think I am a genius," as he wrote in his diary entry for Jan. 1, 1955 (Segal, 1989). Due to this, he was able to convince architects and engineers to help him in his visionary installations. His success can also be attributed to the assistance he received from his girlfriend who was an architect. He started with merely nothing as he did he initially did his painting from the kitchen of his parents. Like every other celebrated artist, he rose from ashes into fame by focusing on his works and delivering quality a niche that had never been experienced before to his audience.
His breakthrough in the monochrome is what made him to be widely known in the industry to date. His works attracted the attention of Pierre Estany who brought the attention to Colette Allendy. After this, he attained recognition through the exhibitions that were held to showcase his works (Yveskleinarchives.org, 2014). It was through these exhibitions that he was later chosen for a mural exhibition in Germany. Later, he travelled wide to showcase his artistic designs and his dreams of changing the field were becoming a reality. Some of the places that he toured during his career include Japan where he furthered his studies in judo and Los Angeles and New York. Works devoid of composition cannot be considered to be works of art. At least this was the stand held by Yves. As a result, he became a successful artist based on the fact that he was ready and willing to devote his time and resources towards the success of his career. This is argued to be the reason behind his title of the first exhibition he held; The monochrome Proposition (Yveskleinarchives.org, 2014). It is true to say that he was open to the views of the public and this was a motivating factor that influenced him to dare for the challenge. The opening of Monochrome Proposition, Blue Period can also be seen as another instance in the career of the author that he uploaded the challenge from his guests. In the exhibition of the The void, he engineered everything but it consisted nothing more than freshly painted white walls. His success was further attributed by the public performance which he called the Athropometrics in which he delivers the connection between mind, body and desire by instructing his assistants to color themselves in blue paint and press themselves against a canvas (Weitemeier, 2005).
To some, Klein’s career was just a mere series of provocative and neo-Dada gestures. However, from an ...