Absolute Effort: The "Total Art" of Yves Klein
Le Vide (1961), Privileged Philosophy, and “Immaterial Pictorial Sensibility"
“The object of this attempt is to create, to establish, and to impress upon the viewing public a sensuous pictorial state within the confines of an art gallery.” – Yves Klein, Overcoming the Problematics of Art (1954. Emphasis added.)
© Photo : All rights reserved
© Artwork : The Estate of Yves Klein c/o ADAGP, Paris
To the viewing public, the interior walls of Galeria Iris Clert, located at 3 rue des Beaux-Arts, were adorned with white paint. The windows, which faced the street, were infused with Klein’s IKB. A total of 3,500 invitations were disseminated, each permitting entry for two individuals, with a designated arrival time of 21:00. Upon the gallery's opening, French Republican guards were positioned at the establishment’s rear entrance, facilitating the entrance of the guests. Positioned behind these guards were private security personnel, attired in all black, who had been commissioned by Klein himself for what he deemed “protection” of the uniformed French guards.
Amidst the aristocratic guests and critics against the backdrop of white walls, Klein navigated through the assembly, observing their reactions until an attendee attempted to draw on the wall. Klein intervened decisively, forcibly ejecting the individual while exclaiming, “Seize this man and throw him out.” A mere ten minutes later, both the guests and Klein were hurriedly evacuated. The arrival of law enforcement and pompiers was noted as the gathering of between 2500 to 3000 individuals outside prompted police intervention. Inside the gallery, the private security personnel attempted to deter the officers, asserting that they possessed no legal authority to enter.
The police and firefighters departed shortly thereafter. The evening proceeded, as Klein undoubtedly smiled and gestured for his guests to re-enter and relish once again, “a representation of freedom in the first material state” (Klein 2003, loc 997). In his journal chronicling the events thereafter, he notes, “I have sold two immaterial paintings out of this exhibition” (Klein 2016, loc 1208).
Eric Michaud, as cited by Johnson in “Hiding in the Open,” writes that Joseph Beuys, a German contemporary of Klein, “wanted to make art the instrument of resurrection, for the unification of man… the desire to spread Christianity’s faith in the possibility of each human being’s rebirth” (Johnson 2020, 167). To Klein, his theory of art was far removed from established ideas like Christian resurrection. Blending physical reality with intangible sensibility, Le Vide was supposed to take the mind of its viewers into a manipulated space of extrasensory perception versus a space of established thought, making the aforesaid incident not only imbued with the political but the ultimate invisible machine: chance.
Nonetheless, how was this extrasensory perception attained? When compared to Beuys, whose systematic integration of Christianity is inextricably linked to his oeuvre, and to another contemporary such as Warhol, whose visually appealing “pop art” primarily critiques the semiotics of capitalism, Klein’s philosophy is less directed toward historical contexts and present experiences, and more focused on the spiritual and the intangible—an idealized, eternal form. Theodor Adorno, a musicologist and social theorist associated with the Frankfurt School, articulated in “Wagner’s Relevance for Today,” “one relates to a work of art not merely, as is often said, by adapting it to fit a new situation, but rather by deciphering within it things to which one has a historically different reaction” (Lepper (ed.) 2002, 596-87). Klein’s aesthetic philosophy dismisses Adorno’s assertion by emphasizing appropriation and historical disintegration over historical distinction.
Klein posited that he was presenting his audience with a novel situation to which they must adapt. This object or idea, when considered alongside his contemplations, insisted that the experience should not revert to a historical understanding but instead to a primordial state – a foundational material condition. Though Klein acknowledged the artistic tradition from which he originated, he rebelled against it consistently despite both of his parents’ immersion in the art world. However, his aversion to their methodologies, coupled with his so-called “discovery” of COLOR, symbolized his personal emancipation from any established lines, preconceived notions, or prior experiences.
In his journals on Judo, Klein articulates, “the bones are the lines of the body,” while the Spirit “is apart from all that” (Klein 2016, loc 392). Committing to the complete abolition of the “line, " Klein’s journey directed him toward the boundless void, a realm where both everything and nothing coexisted. Nevertheless, how does Le Vide conceptualize and realize this immanence? By entwining Klein’s extrasensory sensibility, proposed in Le Vide, with the viewer's experience--regardless of their awareness of Klein’s aesthetic manipulations--the work challenges the socialist values inherent in total art. It may be observed that autonomy and agency are significantly diminished in the experience due to Klein’s imposition within his orchestration (and chance happenings) of the events that transpired; however, his ultimate intention was, if anything, cohesive and committed to the principle of liberty.
However, Klein’s concept of “liberty” eludes any precise definition. Additionally, an entry from his journal titled “Some (false) Foundations, Principles, etc.… and the Condemnation of Evolution” references a dialogue with the French filmmaker François Dufrêne. During this conversation, Dufrêne articulated to Klein, “You must understand this is a world without dimension, a world from which we cannot escape because we have forever been searching within ourselves. That is why we never find the place of the True Spirit within us” (Klein 2016, loc 474). Although Dufrêne adopts a more mediated approach to comprehension through the indvidual, Klein’s quest for the immaterial transcends any limitations of language that constrains the “True Spirit” within- evading even the imperative for definition: a context devoid of context.
Revelatory, or an excessive act of self-aggrandization, Le Vide represented through a material sense the development of a new language to perceive space. Rather than re-imagining and wrestling with the intertextuality of Beuys’ Christian core or Warhol’s deconstruction of consumerism and capitalism, Klein’s immanence existed outside of the experience and the space. This prompts inquiry into the limits of Klein’s aesthetic symbiosis between belief and the work displayed. As any skeptic might conclude, how can a meticulously curated space such as Galerie Iris Clert achieve its complete objective if that objective has been pre-determined? Johnson states, “Without specifically looking for the religious or spiritual in art during the twentieth century—when one saw it—seems more like to be an example of Modern Art’s amusements, as in the case of Klein explaining the ‘transcendent’” (Johnson 2020, 175. Emphasis added).
“When One Saw It” seems to critics a reasonable explanation for the transcendent qualities of Le Vide’s conceptual space. Though the room appears simple, Klein’s meticulous planning, from the space to the invitations and appearance, highlights the single-minded pursuit of Klein’s craft. Is this to be admired or shot down for its bravado? Le Vide is not a mere explanation of the transcendent qualities that Klein pursued, nor were the Anthropometries or Yves Peintures. The evolution of his artworks points towards a revolution of the perception around Klein and his work and the tradition he stems from. Like Wagner, who “would force the individual arts to dissolve, to yield ‘authority,’ in order to merge and disappear into one artwork,” Klein proposes to redefine one’s previous conception of an idea or object, and this renewal is aimed at a definition-less liberation, not confinement through imposition, despite the manipulations speculated in the previous section (Finger, A. and Follett, D., 2011, 113).
Klein’s writings, despite their leanings towards utopian thought, point to an even more remarkable fact about Klein’s idea of the artist and his delivery of total art: “‘True painters and poets’ neither paint nor write;… their presence and the sole fact that they exist as such is their great and unique work.” (Klein 2016, loc 566. Emphasis added). Some might contend that this assertion is presumptuous. A potential rebuttal to Klein would suggest that he overestimated the knowledge and insights of his audience, asserting that no one other than Klein possessed a direct connection to the manner in which he perceived the world and his artistic expressions, despite the material guide he provided to assist his viewers in comprehending his perspective.
His aesthetic philosophy is regarded as either achieved or unachieved through the perspectives of its viewers. As a prolific author through journals, essays, and lectures, Klein provides the means for comprehending his artistic pursuit; however, when subjected to scrutiny, one must question whether these writings are essential to experiencing Klein’s assertion of total art. Certain critics contend that Klein prioritized the perception of individuals with access to his philosophy. He associated himself with artists, critics, and gallery owners who acknowledged his brilliance. He favored the aristocracy, who attended his exhibitions, commissioned his works, and purchased his paintings. While these observations could detract from his legacy, what remains in question is the continuing material pursuit of Klein’s total art.
An Ill-Defined Freedom
Is it possible to integrate the spirit into the material? From an external perspective, “the one thing we may not possess within ourselves: our LIFE,” states Klein, author of a brief yet remarkable career, proves fundamental. The pursuit of total art or a comprehensive art form became the focus of inquiry and speculation (Klein 2016, loc 1042). He endeavored to encapsulate life itself in his work, a life unbound by any fixed idea. Although this concept is, in itself, an idea, it is Klein’s material pursuit that remains with us.
Following the death of Richard Wagner in 1883, the concept of total art continued to develop as a socialist and utopian ideal, striving to unify artists, art, and the public. Freedom emerged as a hallmark of this ideal, inspiring the work of Klein. Nevertheless, it was the art itself that appeared to generate a sense of freedom independent of the artist. Rather than adopting a politically charged pedagogical approach centered on activism, Klein adeptly navigated the role of awareness in the experience of art. This exploration advanced our inquiries regarding spiritual legitimacy, the essence of art, and the artist's role in establishing meaning.
If meaning-making constitutes the product of a shared human activity, how does Klein’s singular pursuit encapsulate the utopian vision intended for all? In short, it does not, but Klein's aesthetic system warrants scrutiny, as it remains ambiguous to what extent he assumed his audience could grasp his vision and whether he viewed this pursuit as a personal journey or a political endeavor. Nevertheless, contemporary artists, such as Lee Wen, have engaged with Klein's legacy in works like "Anthropometry Revision: Yellow Period (after Yves Klein)." The legacy of Klein’s aesthetics endures through the tradition that follows him. Adele Tan, in “Lee Wen and the Untaming of Yves Klein: Art and the Iterative Force,” asserts that “performance art has gravitated towards the ephemeral as one of its theoretical lynchpins” (Tan 2010, 17). She highlights the nonessential nature of the theory underlying performance or work, while underscoring the legacy and influence Klein left behind for subsequent artists to interpret and reenact, thereby creating a “living” canon—a framework that decentralizes critique and prioritizes experience above all.
In the case of Klein, while his aesthetic system is integral to his vision, he placed a greater emphasis on the experience of novel perceptions. The fleeting characteristics of the Anthropometries and Le Vide, realized either immediately or over an extended period, exemplify Klein’s quest for total art--a legacy that extends beyond the confines of his aesthetic system or epoch. Much akin to Wagner during the era of the Symbolists and German Idealists, who similarly sought the immanent, Klein’s pursuit of liberation remains as pertinent today as it was during his lifetime. Yves Peintures represented a departure from an established aesthetic that redefined the catalog, and liberation, a highly contextual topic, remains a concept that transcends temporal boundaries and underscores the significance of definition- a perennial endeavor that aligns with metaphysical and spiritual aspirations. In contemporary society, art is increasingly regarded as a medium for such liberation; whether it is believed to be achieved during an artist’s lifetime or through their posthumous legacy, its intrinsic value persists.
Klein's significance resides in his advocacy for freedom and the absolute, which led to the attempted emergence of his concept of total art. His creations facilitated a space for the immaterial to transcend his “original ideas,” positioning his work as a conduit for novel experiences. By emphasizing the ephemeral yet visible aspects of the viewer's interaction with the object, along with the pivotal roles of performance and conception, Klein's philosophy transcended the limitations of prior modes of thought and introduced a transformative perspective on perspective. While it may not represent the ultimate approach, it undoubtedly originates from a long-standing tradition, both defined and undefined, of re-perceiving artistic expression.
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