Hilma af Klint (1862-1944) was a Swedish artist who until the past few decades was not well-known, this is partially because she did not want her work to be showcasted until 20 years after her death. Hilma was one of the representations of abstract art, producing abstract paintings before famous abstract artists such as Kandinsky. However, Hilma started with her earliest works painting naturalistic and portrait art, before shifting from the figurative to the abstract. Through this turn to the abstract Hilma used colour as a tool for spiritual communication, which was influenced by her connection to Theosophy, Spiritualism and Science.

Spiritual and Scientific Influences

To understand Hilma af Klint it is important to understand the context of the spiritual influences that were central to her artistic expression and the system of beliefs that inspired her.

Hilma's lifetime saw major discoveries in electromagnetism, with advances in scientific understanding of electromagnetic waves. As she was deeply inquisitive of the invisible powers that govern reality, her work often bridges the synergy between science and spirituality. Hilma was fascinated by dualities– invisible and visible, immaterial and material, and the alignment of how electromagnetic waves are both a physical phenomena, yet are invisible to humans without the use of instruments. The recurring pattern of spirals in nature as an indication of form and signs of life, would have influenced Hilma’s perception helping to create a path for her abstractism; as for the first time it was possible to see through the veil.

Hilma was also connected to the spiritual movement of Theosophy, which became popular during her lifetime. Theosophy is a philosophy that connects metaphysics with mysticism and spiritualism, this movement perpetuated that knowledge on divine wisdom provides an access to the enigmas of the universe and the inner essence of humankind. Theosophy was also aligned through its messaging in promoting gender equality, which is why so many women gravitated to this new wave of religious experience. Hilma also participated in séances with four other women who together formed the group De Fem, they regularly organised séances to summon spirits in which they created drawings that they believed were led by a higher being.

Language of Colour

In 1906, Hilma af Klint started a series of work titled Paintings for the Temple, that would span into a larger project taking her the next decade to complete.

Hilma af Klint ‘Group I, Primordial Chaos, no 16’ 1906-07
Image Credit: Art Gallery NSW

Primordial Chaos (1906)

This series started with the first part Primordial Chaos, consisting of 26 paintings. The overarching theme of Primordial Chaos is the depiction of origin and the formation of polarisation. Hilma communicated this through the composition of vibrant colours and their symbolic meanings, the prevailing colours blue, yellow and green convey the harmony and tension of gender duality. Blue is represented as the feminine principle, yellow as the masculine and green as the union.

Hilma af Klint, The Ten Largest, No. 2, 1907
Image Credit: DailyArt Magazine

The Ten Largest (1907)

The monumental paintings of The Ten Largest reflect the stages of human development, depicting the spiritual dimensions of life through colour, motifs and abstract forms. In Childhood Hilma uses jovial, light pastels of soft blues, pinks and yellows evoking an inquisitive expression of innocence. For Youth, more vibrant colours of bold oranges and reds indicate passion and energy. The largest section Adulthood, is more complex and mature with the application of richer hues of purple and green, amongst turbulent motifs. Finally Old Age, is calmer with muted tones that are pale and blended, the composition is more balanced with carefully placed geometric shapes.

Hilma af Klint, The Ten Largest, No. 3, 1907
Image Credit: DailyArt Magazine

Hilma af Klint, The Ten Largest, No. 7, 1907
Image Credit: DailyArt Magazine

The Ten Largest (1907)

The monumental paintings of The Ten Largest reflect the stages of human development, depicting the spiritual dimensions of life through colour, motifs and abstract forms. In Childhood Hilma uses jovial, light pastels of soft blues, pinks and yellows evoking an inquisitive expression of innocence. For Youth, more vibrant colours of bold oranges and reds indicate passion and energy. The largest section Adulthood, is more complex and mature with the application of richer hues of purple and green, amongst turbulent motifs. Finally Old Age, is calmer with muted tones that are pale and blended, the composition is more balanced with carefully placed geometric shapes.

Hilma af Klint, The Ten Largest, No. 9, 1907
Image Credit: DailyArt Magazine

The Altarpieces (1915)

The Altarpieces were created on the later end of the series and are arguably the most striking, illustrating the ascension from the physical to the spiritual. The triptych displays colours as emotional and energetic forces, time and spiritual development is represented in the gradients of the colours. The distinct polarity of the void and the progression to light translates on the canvas as an emerging of spiritual progress. There is also a strong luminous quality that is enhanced by the use of metallic leaf. There is a diverse and systematic use of colour that lines pathways towards a more collective symbol together of knowledge and harmony, rather than a mix of individual qualities to convey a specific meaning.

Hilma af Klint ‘Group X, Altarpiece, no 1’ 1915
Image Credit: Art Gallery NSW

Swan Paintings (1915)

To round up from some of the prominent works of Hilma af Klint, The Swan paintings takes on a journey from the figurative to the geometric form, starting as a union of swans which swirl and expand into a colour wheel. The 5 paintings portray gender duality using a stark palette, returning to the use of blue on the white swans feet and face to indicate the feminine, and yellow on the black swans beak to indicate the masculine. The symmetry mirrors the ease of the swans showing that genders can coexist in peace, presenting the evolution of this essence from the physical animal bodies to the abstract shape.

Hilma af Klint ‘Group IX/SUW, The swan, no 1’ 1915
Image Credit: Art Gallery NSW

Later Reception

There was an initial lack of recognition of Hilma af Klint, as her work was delayed to be in public view. However, her rediscovery in the late 20th century through scholarly attention helped to plant seeds for a major turning point in the public consciousness and reception of Hilma af Klint. In 2018 the Guggenheim Museum in New York brought Hilma’s work to a major international scale, this exhibition was titled Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future and was the first solo exhibition of Hilma af Klint in the US. The exhibition was a major success and helped to cement her legacy into the art history canon, she is embraced as a visionary and continues to inspire many creatives.

Hilma af Klint ‘Group IX/SUW, The swan, no 17’ 1915
Image Credit: Art Gallery NSW

Hilma af Klints work documents her cartography of lived experiences. Through her expression of lived and universal exploration and innovative use of colour, she communicated complex transformative and metaphysical concepts into a formidable visual language; she is a visionary in her use of colour and understood that this language was ahead of her time.

Sources

Almqvist, K. & Belfrage, L. (eds.) (2015) Hilma af Klint : the art of seeing the invisible. Stockholm, Sweden: Axel and Margaret Ax:son Johnson Foundation
Klint, H. af et al. (2018) Hilma af Klint : paintings for the future. New York, NY: Guggenheim
Krogh Madsen, T. M. & Greaves, K. (2021) ‘Intra-Actions with Nature (and Beyond): Hilma af Klint, Else Alfelt, and Sonja Ferlov Mancoba’, in Modern Women Artists in the Nordic Countries, 1900–1960. 1st edition [Online]. Routledge. pp. 240–250
McNab, J. A. (2019) The ghost artist : Tracing spectral embodiment as a figure of aesthetic resistance, in an unknown woman’s eighteenth century paintings, and works by Hilma af Klint and Louise Bourgeois
Nikolic, J. M. (2022) GENDER RECONCILIATION IN HILMA AF KLINT’S PAINTINGS. Zbornik Matice srpske za likovne umetnosti.[Online] 2022 (50), 309–327

Images

https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/artboards/hilma/paintings-for-the-temple/item/78sv18/

https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/masterpiece-story-the-ten-largest-by-hilma-af-klint/

https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/artboards/hilma/altarpieces/item/uswaha/

https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/artboards/hilma/the-swan/item/a7k1o8/

https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/artboards/hilma/the-swan/item/ctuc4g/

The Spiritual Language of Colour: How Hilma af Klint Visualised The Unseen

To understand Hilma af Klint it is important to understand the context of the spiritual influences that were central to her artistic expression and the system of beliefs that inspired her.

In 1906, Hilma af Klint started a series of work titled Paintings for the Temple, that would span into a larger project taking her the next decade to complete.

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