Outsider Art: Adolf Wolfli

Adolf Wolfli (1864-1930) was a Swiss artist who is regarded as one of the first influences in the Art Brut or outsider art traditions. Wolfli began drawing as a psychiatric patient in the Waldau Clinic in Berne, Switzerland. His first surviving works, a series of 50 pencil drawings, were created between 1904 and 1906. In 1908, he began the creation of a semi-autobiographical epic which eventually stretched to 45 volumes, containing a total of over 1,600 illustrations. Wolfli combined musical lyrics, illustrations, and sometimes, magazine clippings, to create a kaleidoscopic effect. Almost all of his works were produced on either newsprint paper, brown packing paper, or regular drawing paper, and were designed with colored pencils.

“Hautania and Haaverianna” is a part of Wolfli's Bread Art productions. These pieces of art were the ones he created for others in exchange for colored pencils, paper, and tobacco. These single-sheet drawings were mostly composed between 1912 and 1930.

This particular work of art is as strange as Wolfli gets. From reading about his use of symbolism, I know that the crosses on the heads of the figures are strictly religious, and that the upright figure is a female. Females in Wolfli's illustrations can be identified by the fact that they are usually holding an object, this time, a bass violin.

Like most outsider artists, Wolfli created definitive lines, encouraging a one-dimensional perspective. There is no near and far to this painting, only one place for the eyes to rest. As it is abstract, there is no noticeable shading. All colors are flat and well-defined. Wolfli's use of color is interesting, as well. Most of the time, he relied on neutral tones, only using color to accent the overall illustration. Here, color is used sparingly on the bass violin. Complimenting colors are used to create a false frame around the entire work.

Although Wolfli was an untrained artist, he had a natural knack for balance. His art is very geometrical, which adds to this element. Wolfli's geometrical shapes fill up the page, utilizing every inch of space. Because he used colored pencils, the texture of his work generally depends on the type of paper he used, although he was known for using cross-hatching and other patterns throughout his pieces.

I really like Wolfli's work, especially because it reminds me of my husband, Nick. He is a songwriter, and he scrawls down his lyrics much like Wolfli did. Nick prefers to put his lyrics down with marker on nice drawing paper. He then creates illustrations to compliment the words, and sometimes uses photos or other cut-outs to decorate the page. When I looked at Wolfli for the first time, I immediately noticed the likeness to my husband's pieces. While I haven't had the opportunity yet to read Wolfli's lyrics, it is definitely something I'd like to do.