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Hilma af Klint: A Biography
A highly anticipated biography of the enigmatic and popular Swedish painter.
The Swedish painter Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) was forty-four years old when she broke with the academic tradition in which she had been trained to produce a body of radical, abstract works the likes of which had never been seen before. Today, it is widely accepted that af Klint was one of the earliest abstract academic painters in Europe.
But this is only part of her story. Not only was she a working female artist, she was also an avowed clairvoyant and mystic. Like many of the artists at the turn of the twentieth century who developed some version of abstract painting, af Klint studied Theosophy, which holds that science, art, and religion are all reflections of an underlying life-form that can be harnessed through meditation, study, and experimentation. Well before Kandinsky, Mondrian, and Malevich declared themselves the inventors of abstraction, af Klint was working in a nonrepresentational mode, producing a powerful visual language that continues to speak to audiences today. The exhibition of her work in 2018 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City attracted more than 600,000 visitors, making it the most-attended show in the history of the institution.
Despite her enormous popularity, there has not yet been a biography of af Klint—until now. Inspired by her first encounter with the artist’s work in 2008, Julia Voss set out to learn Swedish and research af Klint’s life—not only who the artist was but what drove and inspired her. The result is a fascinating biography of an artist who is as great as she is enigmatic.
The Swedish painter Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) was forty-four years old when she broke with the academic tradition in which she had been trained to produce a body of radical, abstract works the likes of which had never been seen before. Today, it is widely accepted that af Klint was one of the earliest abstract academic painters in Europe.
But this is only part of her story. Not only was she a working female artist, she was also an avowed clairvoyant and mystic. Like many of the artists at the turn of the twentieth century who developed some version of abstract painting, af Klint studied Theosophy, which holds that science, art, and religion are all reflections of an underlying life-form that can be harnessed through meditation, study, and experimentation. Well before Kandinsky, Mondrian, and Malevich declared themselves the inventors of abstraction, af Klint was working in a nonrepresentational mode, producing a powerful visual language that continues to speak to audiences today. The exhibition of her work in 2018 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City attracted more than 600,000 visitors, making it the most-attended show in the history of the institution.
Despite her enormous popularity, there has not yet been a biography of af Klint—until now. Inspired by her first encounter with the artist’s work in 2008, Julia Voss set out to learn Swedish and research af Klint’s life—not only who the artist was but what drove and inspired her. The result is a fascinating biography of an artist who is as great as she is enigmatic.
424 pages, Hardcover
Published October 19, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
June 28, 2023
Originally, I wrote a negative review of this biography of Hilma af Klint, based on an article that talked about changes made in the English translation from the original German biography. The way the article was written, it seemed to imply that the author had no part in these changes.
I decided to go directly to the source, so I contacted the author, Julia Voss, and she replied to my query, saying:
"The English version cut out a chapter which deals with Swedish history and family history of the af Klints. All the rest is included. Plus I added or altered some passages due to new research material I have found. So - I would really recommend reading the biography in English. Thanks for asking!"
If you read my previous review, I apologize for the confusion and highly recommend this fascinating biography of Hilma af Klint.
I decided to go directly to the source, so I contacted the author, Julia Voss, and she replied to my query, saying:
"The English version cut out a chapter which deals with Swedish history and family history of the af Klints. All the rest is included. Plus I added or altered some passages due to new research material I have found. So - I would really recommend reading the biography in English. Thanks for asking!"
If you read my previous review, I apologize for the confusion and highly recommend this fascinating biography of Hilma af Klint.
December 7, 2023
Immediately after watching the movie "Hilma," I sought out a biography. This is the only one (so far), but what a masterpiece it is! Wow! Julia Voss was able to bring to light the phenomenal Hilma af Klint by, amongst other research, reading more than 26,000 personal writings of the artist. The narrator, Doria Bramante was phenomenal. Mystics unite!
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February 26, 2023Перша і поки єдина біографія Гільми аф Клінт, яку наразі ні з чим порівнювати. До англійського перекладу є питання, детальніше можна прочитати тут, скажу лише, що книжка раптом стала на сотню сторінок тоншою. Але якщо ви не читаєте німецькою або шведською, вибору у вас нема. В загальних рисах біографія аф Клінт була відома і раніше. Книжка Юлії Восс, по-перше, дає читачу контекст Швеції межі століть: історичний, соціальний, культурний; по-друге, спростовує деякі міфи: ніби аф Клінт ніколи не експонувала свої абстрактні роботи (експонувала двічі, без успіху) або вела відлюдницьке ��иття (ні й доволі багато подорожувала Європою); по-третє, намагається дати цілісну візію її творчості й особистості. Коли тільки роботи аф Клінт через майже сорок років після її смерті були представлені публіці, вони були сприйняті поблажливо, їх рахували як щось випадкове, незаплановане, вдалий збіг обставин. Саму Гільму часто сприймали як “божевільну жінку” яка чула голоси в голові. У 1986 році американський критик Гілтон Крамер вибухнув лютою тирадою: “Картини Гільми аф Клінт по суті кольорові діаграми. Відводити їм почесне місце поряд з роботами Кандинського, Мондріана, Малевича та Купки абсурдно. Аф Клінт просто не мисткиня їхнього рівня i, - чи наважиться це хтось сказати?, - ніколи не отримала б такого завищеного ставлення, якби не була жінкою”. Восс переконливо показує, що роботи аф Клінт були результатом не меншої майстерності та інтелекту, ніж у її сучасників-чоловіків.
August 22, 2023
Thorough and only history of a female artist. I did think that this could have used a harsher edit. Af Klint lived a not super well documented life, aside from her own notes, which do not focus on the day to day. I felt Voss was adding three decorative or auxiliary sentences for every fact she could dig up about the artist.
As to the subject: Hilma read like a authoritarian and serious woman, and while her work shines for having been disregarded for so long, I wouldn't invite her to a party.
As to the subject: Hilma read like a authoritarian and serious woman, and while her work shines for having been disregarded for so long, I wouldn't invite her to a party.
January 6, 2024
I’m currently a bit (a lot) obsessed with Hilma af Klint and this biography gave me everything I’ve ever wanted!
Julia Voss did a monumental job searching in the archives and putting everything together, especially considering that af Klint left very little written about her personal life. I very much appreciated Voss’ choice to not speculate on “the true nature” of af Klint’s spiritual messages — was Hilma’s interest in the occult a way to justify her homosexuality? was it to feel more autonomous as a woman in the 19th century? — I am glad Voss doesn’t go there and sticks to Hilma’s experience of reality instead.
I found it very fascinating how af Klint wasn’t working alone but always had a support/collaborative network around her, it’s something quite rare in art history. I loved reading about all the other women mentioned in this book as well. My next read will be The Saga of The Rose about Anna Cassel because I NEED TO KNOW MORE!!!
Julia Voss did a monumental job searching in the archives and putting everything together, especially considering that af Klint left very little written about her personal life. I very much appreciated Voss’ choice to not speculate on “the true nature” of af Klint’s spiritual messages — was Hilma’s interest in the occult a way to justify her homosexuality? was it to feel more autonomous as a woman in the 19th century? — I am glad Voss doesn’t go there and sticks to Hilma’s experience of reality instead.
I found it very fascinating how af Klint wasn’t working alone but always had a support/collaborative network around her, it’s something quite rare in art history. I loved reading about all the other women mentioned in this book as well. My next read will be The Saga of The Rose about Anna Cassel because I NEED TO KNOW MORE!!!
March 14, 2024
Ugh what slog. There was some interesting info in here and I did learn more about hilma but it was so scattered random unengaging !
December 30, 2022
I was a little disappointed by this book. I admire many of af Klint's paintings and find her story as one of the earliest abstract academic painters in Europe to be very interesting. But I like her paintings for their design and color, and am uninterested in reading about her experiences as a clairvoyant and mystic. Af Klint had little success showing and selling her work during her lifetime. She recognized that the public was not ready to appreciate what she had done and was wise enough to direct her relatives to refrain from showing her work until 20 years after her death. One very interesting part of the book was the story of how the painter Hilla von Rebay worked to establish an art museum in New York that would be a "temple of nonrepresentation and reverence." She somehow convinced Solomon R. Guggenheim to collect nonrepresentational art and to create a building where art would lead the way to a higher, spiritual reality. This dream was realized when Guggenheim commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to design a building for his collection. In 2018-19 there was a fantastic exhibition of af Klint's paintings at the Guggenheim. These paintings from 1907 look like they could have been painted yesterday.
November 25, 2023
This is without a doubt one of the most thoroughly researched biographies I have ever read, owing in no small part to the sheer amount of documents and artworks of Af Klint's that survives to the modern day. Voss does right by Af Klints indelible legacy with a book that analyzes the full breadth of her complex personal relationships, avant-garde views on gender and sexuality, her spirituality, and above all her expansive body of work. Voss disseminates fact after fact to make for a biography that is extremely dense while interweaving contemporary and modern analyses as well as historical context that will no doubt illuminate for the mainstream public many previously unexplored areas of her work and life and in turn, affect deeply for the better, the legacy of the artist herself. This is THE definitive biography on Hilma Af Klint, and I have no doubt it will remain that way for years to come.
February 22, 2024
I AM SO OBSESSED WITH HER!!!
February 22, 2024
It took me a long time to read the first half of this book, but Hilma af Klints later work and life was incredibly moving and impossible to put down. Very well researched, can’t recommend enough.
February 26, 2024
Amazing biography, incredibly well-researched and with utter respect for its subject. Af Klint's spiritual beliefs are no up for debate or interpretation, Voss just introduces us all to the artist mind without any sugar coating. An amazing read.
March 26, 2024
A fabulous book about an intriguing and little-known artist, Hilma af Klint of Sweden. Born in 1826, Klint was ahead of her time; she was the first abstract expressionist artist, painting large-scale and small-scale works of colourful biomorphic and geometric shapes influenced by the spiritual world. But no one knew it in the 1950s, when Abstract Expressionism burst onto the art scene in New York as a whole new genre. Hilma af Klint died shy of a decade prior to the movement, had rarely shown her work, and her will stated that her works could not be exhibited until at least twenty years after her death. Boom! Yet, when her work was shown in the United States, the exhibits were blockbusters. One was at LACMA in Los Angeles in 1986, and more recently in 2019 at the Guggenheim in New York City. The 2019 exhibition, Hilma Af Klint: Paintings for the Future was the most-visited exhibition in the museum's 60-year history.
The book provides great detail about af Klint: her involvement in the spiritual world, her connections with spiritual guides through seances in small (five people) then larger groups of women, and her study and practice of theosophy and anthroposophy. Hilma’s works, according to Voss, were directed by messages from her guides, which Hilda labeled "commissions." The guides had names, and many appeared to resemble saints of Roman Catholicism. It was hard to get my head around, that this brilliant, independent woman was dependent upon spiritual guides for direction and inspiration.
What I appreciated about Voss’s book was her description of the societal and political circumstances around the time af Klint was painting. What stood out was the debate about women’s roles at the turn of the twentieth century. The women’s movement had just began with women’s suffrage debates. Voss describes how various practitioners—psychiatrists, philosophers, and other medical doctors—were vocal about women being inferior and incapable of engaging in roles competing with men in science, art, and education. One particularly good chapter was Chapter 14: "Genius". Voss describes how author and philosopher Otto Weininger wrote Sex and Character, where he stated women were inferior to men in all aspects, including art creation, and men could possess genius but women could not. Voss doesn’t mention af Klint in this chapter, but it provides context for af Klint’s work.
The book is well-researched, but at times it’s dry. The chapters don’t flow well, which contributes to a challenging read. Overall, it's a good book about a ground-breaking artist with excellent colour photographs of her work.
The book provides great detail about af Klint: her involvement in the spiritual world, her connections with spiritual guides through seances in small (five people) then larger groups of women, and her study and practice of theosophy and anthroposophy. Hilma’s works, according to Voss, were directed by messages from her guides, which Hilda labeled "commissions." The guides had names, and many appeared to resemble saints of Roman Catholicism. It was hard to get my head around, that this brilliant, independent woman was dependent upon spiritual guides for direction and inspiration.
What I appreciated about Voss’s book was her description of the societal and political circumstances around the time af Klint was painting. What stood out was the debate about women’s roles at the turn of the twentieth century. The women’s movement had just began with women’s suffrage debates. Voss describes how various practitioners—psychiatrists, philosophers, and other medical doctors—were vocal about women being inferior and incapable of engaging in roles competing with men in science, art, and education. One particularly good chapter was Chapter 14: "Genius". Voss describes how author and philosopher Otto Weininger wrote Sex and Character, where he stated women were inferior to men in all aspects, including art creation, and men could possess genius but women could not. Voss doesn’t mention af Klint in this chapter, but it provides context for af Klint’s work.
The book is well-researched, but at times it’s dry. The chapters don’t flow well, which contributes to a challenging read. Overall, it's a good book about a ground-breaking artist with excellent colour photographs of her work.
April 22, 2023
I recognize the author's predicament -- much of the notes left by her painter-spiritualist subject were in Swedish but also were supposedly dictated from the spirits that af Klint communicated with. They were also sporadic and often dominated by various differences and grievances in af Klint's spiritualist circles.
Having said that, Voss was able to pull together enough threads to tell af Kilnt's story, but had to rely on the timing of some historic events to figure out what af Klint must have thought about, say, Vasily Kandinsky's time in Stockholm. None of her speculations seem particularly wild, but after awhile one realizes that af Klint was truly, as we say, in her own little world for much of her life. I honestly have to say I am less impressed with af Klint as a thinker and artist than I expected to be.
Having said that, Voss was able to pull together enough threads to tell af Kilnt's story, but had to rely on the timing of some historic events to figure out what af Klint must have thought about, say, Vasily Kandinsky's time in Stockholm. None of her speculations seem particularly wild, but after awhile one realizes that af Klint was truly, as we say, in her own little world for much of her life. I honestly have to say I am less impressed with af Klint as a thinker and artist than I expected to be.
February 3, 2023
I cannot attest to the translation, but I really enjoyed this biography. A vast amount of research went into it, which I can appreciate. Admittedly, there are a lot of gaps not documented despite all the notebooks Hilma left behind. The author made a valiant attempt to speculate the possibilities from other sources of research. I love learning about what I can consider an accurate description of the evolution of abstract art not to mention the fact that it was actually a woman who was instrumental in the concept and planning of the Guggenheim Museum!! if you are interested in this amazing artist and/or the spiritual art movement I recommend this biography.
February 11, 2024
The colors, the lines, the swirls, the symbols. Not every good book becomes a good audiobook and books about artists and their work fall into this category.. like this otherwise well constructed book.
Likewise every interesting subject does not necessarily make a good book. This one was written in a scholarly fashion to factually and chronologically establish Hilma as the first abstract artist.
Unfortunately Hilma’s intriguing story of her connection with higher planes of existence gets lost in the effort to establish her place in art history.
She says she’s talking with god or gods. I think that takes precedence over Kandinsky et al.
Likewise every interesting subject does not necessarily make a good book. This one was written in a scholarly fashion to factually and chronologically establish Hilma as the first abstract artist.
Unfortunately Hilma’s intriguing story of her connection with higher planes of existence gets lost in the effort to establish her place in art history.
She says she’s talking with god or gods. I think that takes precedence over Kandinsky et al.
February 20, 2024
This is likely not the definitive biography of af Klint, but it’s an important start, documenting her life as well as possible. The writing is choppy and there are clearly gaps in the record. I wish Voss had allowed herself to speculate more on af Klint’s thought and symbolism. Also, there is no attempt to critique her work.
Even so, I’m grateful for the author’s hard work to give shape to the artist’s life. The spiritual aspects of art have been repressed for several decades and the recent interest in Hilma af Klint’s masterpieces suggests that the mystical is regaining a place in the aesthetic milieu.
Even so, I’m grateful for the author’s hard work to give shape to the artist’s life. The spiritual aspects of art have been repressed for several decades and the recent interest in Hilma af Klint’s masterpieces suggests that the mystical is regaining a place in the aesthetic milieu.
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November 1, 2023Such beautiful art work from this very intriguing artist. This biography filled in more of Hilma’s life for me after reading the novel “the Friday Night Club” a few weeks ago. Her Art still seems wonderfully mysterious to me so that’s nice. Lol. Often the more I learn of the artist the less I appreciate her work. But all that she was able to overcome in the rigid Swedish society was a testimony to her devotion to her art and her spirituality. This is not an easy read though. It took me weeks to get through.
May 24, 2023
Would probably deem this closer to a 3.75 stars.
A little dry/sluggish in parts (the author includes a LOT of surrounding/background information), not necessarily the best biography I’ve ever read but overall an enjoyable read, and pulled all together really nicely in the last section. I’ve been captivated by af Klint’s work since I first interacted with it so I was glad to read more about the artist and her very long life!
A little dry/sluggish in parts (the author includes a LOT of surrounding/background information), not necessarily the best biography I’ve ever read but overall an enjoyable read, and pulled all together really nicely in the last section. I’ve been captivated by af Klint’s work since I first interacted with it so I was glad to read more about the artist and her very long life!
November 29, 2023
I haven't finished this book and maybe just now I'm finally admitting I never will. af Klint is fascinating and this biography is well researched and important -- af Kliint is very underrated and so glad she's finally getting her due. And I think I'm just not a biography person. But if you're interested in the spiritualism movement or the abstract art movement (she really was the first!) or female artists more generally, definitely read this book!
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October 19, 2022This day, the book will be released! The film is wonderful. She had a Theosophical background, something she shared with Pandit Dina Nath Muju, also an explorer of the relationship between form and formless. Vide: repose.ghost.io
Want to read
January 25, 2023DMPL EXAMINED 2023_01_25
March 20, 2023
Fabulous bio!
March 21, 2023
interesting. a bit oddly silent on sexuality. more interesting if you care about theosophy
May 23, 2023
Unclear why the author +\- translator couldn’t conclude that a woman with lifelong roommates and some real L Word level intrigue was gay.
June 15, 2023
While this book was chronological and well researched, it read much like a textbook and was not lively enough to invigorate an interest in this artist’s work
September 29, 2023
Interesting! As much a bio of Hilma as it is a history of theosophy and a rewriting of the history of abstraction.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews