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International Klein Blue: A brief history and how to bring his blue into your home
The day before Yves Klein married Rotraut Uecker, he bought a small crown from an antique shop, took it home, painted it blue and it gave it to his soon-to-be wife to wear on their wedding day. ‘He was the King of Blue and I was his Queen,’ she later said in an interview. The story goes that Klein was first seduced by the colour when he saw the cerulean skies above the Mediterranean in France. ‘As I lay upon the beach of Nice, I began to feel hatred for birds which flew back and forth across my blue sky, cloudless sky,’ he said. ‘They tried to bore holes in my greatest and most beautiful work.’ But it was the paint supplier Édouard Adam who truly ignited Klein’s passion for the colour. In 1956, he showed him two powdered pigments. The first was Prussian blue and the second was ultramarine, or as it later became known, International Klein Blue (IKB): a deep, lustrous shade that would dominate the artist’s work until his untimely death in 1962 at the age of 34.
Klein was prodigiously creative. The son of two painters, he had a fondness for showmanship and a love of magic, as well as a deep-rooted sense of spirituality. He also spent 15 months in Japan, where he worked steadily at Kodokan Judo Institute and obtained the maximum grade in judo granted to Europeans. When he returned to Paris in 1954, however, his focus became art.
Daniel Moquay, the head of Klein’s estate, identifies the 1957 exhibition Proposte Monocrome, Epoca Blu at Milan’s Gallery Apollinaire as a significant moment in the artist’s career. This was the first time he presented an entire room of blue monochromes and it was here that the artist Lucio Fontana, who went on to become one of Klein’s most notable collectors, purchased one of his works for the first time. Incidentally, two weeks later Fontana also bought a red painting, but soon returned it to Klein as he said he could not bear living with it.
Radical displays defined Klein’s short career. Also in 1957, he released 1,001 helium-filled blue balloons into the skies above Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris to mark the opening of a solo show. The following year his exhibition known as The Void, also in Paris, attracted 3,000 visitors to its opening night, even though it consisted of an empty gallery. The crowds had to be dispersed by the police. Other noteworthy performances included nine musicians playing a single note drawn out for 20 minutes, then 20 minutes of silence. Another involved Klein directing three naked women daubed in blue paint as they imprinted images of their bodies on a white canvas. As Daniel Moquay says, ‘Klein is an artist for the artists.’
Shop our curated selection of Klein-inspired pieces below.
Little Greene's Ultra Blue and YesColours' Electric Blue are the closest paints to International Klein Blue that we've found. The bright and saturated hue is best used in moderation, as an accent of bold colour in a room.
Bold bedding, a fun mirror and a rug that's reminiscent of one of Klein's abstract paintings.
Habitat has some wonderful and affordable electric blue pieces in their 60th anniversary collection, and these two chairs are highlights.
This collection of elegant homeware is a fuss-free way to introduce the dramatic shade to your dining room.
Portable lamps are incredibly versatile, as they can be placed anywhere without a tangled unsightly wire trailing behind. These three have a retro feel thanks to their curved, simple silhouettes and would add a pop of cheerful colour to a living room or bedroom.
Michael Sinclair1/9On the first floor of Charles Rutherfoord's London home is the electric blue dressing room, painted in 'Bleu Royale' from Zuber, with steps leading up to the bathroom and its terrace.
Simon Brown2/9In this kitchen, belonging to Hannah Cecil Gurney, gilded walls have been set against Yves Klein Blue, making 'the tiny cooking space feel like the inside of a delicious chocolate box'.
Paul Massey3/9This entire Nicola Harding project is full of bold blue notes but nowhere more so than the dining room, whose ceilings are painted in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Hague Blue’, which brings the panelling to life. ‘Blue and brown are an electric combination,’ Nicola says.
Michael Sinclair4/9A keen carpenter, Rupert Charles-Jones took charge of the woodwork when renovating a dilapidated byre – he used tulipwood to make the kitchen units and island, which are painted in ultramarine blue. Reclaimed laboratory surfaces were used for the worktop and salvaged pine for the floor.
Sharyn Cairns5/9In this bathroom in a London townhouse designed by Suzy Hoodless, Klein blue tiles have been paired with bright yellow rugs for a surprisingly graphic look.
Davide Lovatti6/9When renovating her Tuscan monastery, artist Emily Young painted the remaining apse of the ruined church in a striking ultramarine blue. It is a brilliant backdrop for displaying her sculptures.
Paul Massey7/9In this Victorian villa, interior designer Tom Morris painted the fitted wardrobes in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Ultra Marine Blue’, which complements the red fireplace tiles from Mosaic Factory.
8/9The kitchen in this open plan room needed to feel distinct from the other living spaces, so Laura Stephens placed an Yves Klein blue lamp on the island as a ‘punctuation mark’ between the areas.
Paul Massey9/9The living room of this hotel designed by Jocelyne Sibuet features a sapphire blue settee sofa in an otherwise neutral scheme.
