With the Flag (Mit der Fahne)

With the Flag (Mit der Fahne) by Paul Klee is a seminal drawing created in 1918. Executed masterfully in ink on paper and subsequently affixed to board, this work exemplifies Klee's precise draftsmanship during the final year of World War I. This period marked a crucial transition in the artist’s output, where he increasingly favored the graphic abstraction and geometric experimentation that would define his mature style. As a prominent figure in the German modernist movement, Klee often explored themes of movement, architectural structure, and spiritual geometry through simple, immediate lines. The classification as a drawing emphasizes the spontaneous nature of the ink medium and the artist's intense focus on essential form over the application of color.

The subject matter, indicated by the title, suggests a fragmented or dynamic representation of a standard or banner. Unlike literal depictions, Klee utilizes angular, semi-abstract forms to evoke the concept of the flag, rather than illustrate a specific, recognizable object. The technique employs varying weights of black ink, defining planes and shapes that hint at underlying architectural scaffolding or mechanical structures intertwined with the suggested fabric of the banner. This approach reflects Klee’s ongoing interest in reducing visual information to its basic elements, communicating mood and structure primarily through line and the interplay of positive and negative space. Dating precisely to 1918, the drawing carries the profound cultural weight of a nation facing deep societal upheaval at the war’s conclusion, subtly reflecting the tension of the era without becoming overtly political.

Today, the original work, With the Flag (Mit der Fahne), is housed in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, where it contributes to one of the institution’s comprehensive holdings of Klee's early modernist graphic pieces. The piece’s continued prominence ensures its visibility in academic study. While original drawings of this fragile nature are reserved for institutional display, high-quality digital reproductions and fine art prints of many works by this prolific German artist are widely disseminated, contributing to the broader educational access often facilitated by the public domain. This drawing remains an essential document detailing Klee’s transition into the geometric high Modernism of the post-war era.