The Swan, No. 12 - Hilma af Klint
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Description
A geometric composition from 1915 by Hilma af Klint, exploring themes of duality and spiritual harmony through balanced, prismatic forms.
The Swan (No. 17) is a work from the series titled The Swan, created by Swedish artist Hilma af Klint in 1915. This series explores themes of duality, spiritual evolution, and the reconciliation of opposites. The composition is divided horizontally, separating the upper and lower halves of the canvas with a distinct horizon line. At the centre of the work sits a geometric form, resembling a diamond or a double-ended prism. This shape is segmented into vertical bands of colour, transitioning through a spectrum that suggests a prismatic light effect. The upper portion of the prism is set against a pale, circular background, while the lower portion is anchored by a darker, circular base. These circular elements evoke celestial or earthly spheres, grounding the more abstract geometric form. Af Klint was a pioneer of abstract painting, working in relative isolation from the mainstream art movements of her time. Her practice was deeply influenced by her interest in spiritualism, theosophy, and anthroposophy. She viewed her artistic output as a means to visualise complex metaphysical concepts that existed beyond the physical realm. The symmetry and balance present in this piece reflect her search for harmony between opposing forces, such as light and dark, or spirit and matter. Unlike many of her contemporaries who moved toward abstraction through the reduction of representational forms, af Klint developed a unique visual language based on symbols and geometry. The application of paint is precise, allowing the colours within the central prism to maintain a clear, structured appearance. This print captures the subtle textures of the original oil paint, providing a clear view of the artist's deliberate brushwork and the muted, earthy tones that define the background. It is a piece that invites quiet contemplation of form and balance.
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Manufacturing
Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
The Swan, No. 12 - Hilma af Klint
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Specific Features
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- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
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Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
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Artist Biography
Hilma af Klint
She was born in 1862 into a naval family in Stockholm. She showed early ability in both mathematics and botany, studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, graduated with honours in 1887, and established herself as a conventional painter of landscapes and portraits. She also worked as a scientific illustrator, producing botanical drawings of fungi for a book that was never published. In 1919 and 1920 she drew flowers almost daily, creating jewel-toned watercolours with the precision of a naturalist who knew when each species bloomed.
The abstract work came from a different source. She attended her first seance at seventeen. In 1896 she formed a group called De Fem (The Five) with four other women: Anna Cassel, Cornelia Cederberg, Sigrid Hedman, and Mathilda Nilsson. They contacted what they believed to be spirit guides from another dimension and kept meticulous notes. In 1906, aged forty-four, she received instructions during a seance to create paintings for a Temple. She never understood where or what this Temple was, but she began.
The Paintings for the Temple series, 193 works made between 1906 and 1915, includes compositions that are completely abstract. She used a systematic colour symbolism: blue for femininity or spirituality, yellow for masculinity or intellect. Spirals, circles, and intersecting lines represented spiritual forces or natural processes. Where Kandinsky's abstraction looked inward to the artist's own psychology, af Klint believed astral spirits were working through her hands.
She died in 1944. The embargo lifted in 1964, but the work was not shown publicly until 1986. In 2018, the Guggenheim mounted Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future. It drew over 600,000 visitors, the most attended exhibition in the museum's history. She left behind more than 1,200 paintings and thousands of pages of notes.
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