- Yves Klein: With the Void, Full PowersOur PickBy Kerry Brougher, Philippe Vergne, Klaus Ottmann, Yves Klein
- Yves Klein: 1928-1962By Hannah Weitemeier
- Yves Klein By HimselfBy Klaus Ottmann, Yves Klein
- Yves Klein: Works, Writings, InterviewsBy Klaus Ottmann, Yves Klein
Important Art by Yves Klein
Blue Monochrome (1957)
This is one of Klein's first monochromes featuring International Klein Blue. He reported that, at the age of nineteen, he looked up at the sky and realized the infinite, immaterial space surrounding the universe. To depict his vision, he chose to use only one color, a vibrant shade of ultramarine, which he later perfected for use with the aid of chemists. The painting contains no trace of line or imagery, encouraging the viewer to immerse herself in the color alone and to experience its evocations. Symbolic, perhaps, of the sky and the sea, it also had resonances in Klein's own religion, Catholicism, as not only a symbol of the Holy Ghost, but also as the shade traditionally used in the depiction of the Virgin Mary's robes in Renaissance paintings.
Le Vide (1958)
To further his artistic vision of the immaterial, Klein created Le Vide (The Void), removing everything from the Iris Clert Gallery except for an empty cabinet. Klein also created a dramatic entrance for the opening ceremony, in which visitors were welcomed into the empty room. Regarding the work Klein stated, "My paintings are now invisible and I would like to show them in a clear and positive manner..." Although the stunt might be read as part of Klein's ongoing interest in mysticism and "the void," like much of his work it might also be read in a slightly contradictory manner, as a political attack on the traditional art object and the gallery system that supports it.
Le Saut dans le Vide (Leap into the Void) (1960)
This controversial photomontage was constructed by Klein by collaging his falling body onto an image of a street. From a young age, he had stated that he possessed the power to levitate, here, we see him attempting to defy gravity. The physicality of the performance might have been inspired in part by Klein's judo training, but it might equally have been inspired by his attitudes to earlier artistic evocations of what he regarded as "the void." Speaking of a still life by the Russian Suprematist Kazimir Malevich, he once wrote, "Malevich was actually standing before the infinite - I am in it. You don't represent or produce it - you are it."
Influences and Connections

- Pierre Restany
- Claude Pascal
- Max Heindel
- Jean Tinguely
- John Cage
- Raymond Hains
- Arman
- Pierre Restany
- Claude Pascal
- Thomas McEvilley
- Dino Buzzati
- Neo-Dada
- Nouveau Réalisme
- Performance Art
- Monochrome Painting