You Strong One, O-Oh Oh You! (plate facing page 46) from Potsdamer Platz oder Die Nächte des neuen Messias. Ekstatische Visionen (Potsdamer Platz or The Nights of the New Messiah. Ecstatic Visions)

You Strong One, O-Oh Oh You! (plate facing page 46) from Potsdamer Platz oder Die Nächte des neuen Messias. Ekstatische Visionen (Potsdamer Platz or The Nights of the New Messiah. Ecstatic Visions) by Paul Klee is a key component of the illustrated book published in 1919. This work, an offset lithograph reproduction, is one of ten plates that make up the complete vision of urban anxiety and spiritual expectation created by the German master. The publication emerged during a tumultuous yet creatively fertile period in German culture, immediately following the conclusion of World War I, reflecting the Expressionist drive to capture inner emotional and psychic realities.

Klee utilized printmaking extensively during this crucial transition period, moving rapidly from representational forms toward the symbolic and semi-abstract language that would define his mature career. The conceptual core of the book, Potsdamer Platz oder Die Nächte des neuen Messias, uses the famous Berlin square as a focal point for exploring the modern city's spiritual alienation and the anticipation of radical socio-political change. This specific plate, You Strong One, O-Oh Oh You!, exemplifies Klee’s graphic vision from 1919, characterized by its emphasis on stark linear forms, movement, and a dynamic interplay between light and dark fields inherent to the lithography process.

The deliberate choice of offset lithography for the illustrated book format facilitated the widespread dissemination of Klee’s experimental imagery. As a seminal example of modern German graphic art, this piece functions both as a powerful individual print and as an essential narrative component of the larger series. The existence of multiple editions and reference photographs has ensured the continued study of these works; while the original edition is rare, digital prints sometimes enter the public domain, offering broad access to Klee's development. This historically important illustrated book resides in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.