Rudolf von Huhn "Kites and Gusts"1955 Goauche on Paper

Executed in 1955, Kites and Gusts is a refined example of mid-century American geometric abstraction by Rudolf von Huhn (1884–1968). Born in San Francisco, von Huhn studied and trained in engineering in Germany before fully committing to painting—an education that profoundly shaped his visual language. His compositions reveal not improvisation, but structure: calibrated angles, tensile arcs, and deliberate spatial relationships governed by an engineer’s precision.

In Kites and Gusts, angular forms hover against a deep, velvety black ground, animated by taut white vectors and punctuated by vivid red and cobalt blue accents. The sweeping arcs traverse the surface like wind currents, while sharply faceted geometric “figures” suggest airborne motion. The title underscores the sense of aerodynamic tension—abstraction conceived as structured energy rather than spontaneous gesture.

Von Huhn’s work occupies an important position within American modernism. During his lifetime he exhibited at major institutions including the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Norton Gallery of Art. His paintings bridge European Constructivist discipline and American postwar abstraction, maintaining clarity of line and compositional rigor while embracing movement and spatial dynamism.

This gouache on paper measures 12 x 20 inches (sight) and is presented in a black frame measuring 18 x 25 inches. The work retains strong color saturation and crisp linear definition, with the surface reading clean and stable. The graphic RH monogram appears lower left.

Kites and Gusts is a sophisticated and architectonic composition—an elegant example of von Huhn’s mature abstract vocabulary and an excellent representative work from his 1950s period.

Rudolf von Huhn (1884–1968) was born in San Francisco and trained as an engineer in Germany before dedicating himself fully to painting in the 1940s. His technical education deeply informed his mature abstract language, which is characterized by structural precision, calibrated line, and spatial equilibrium. Von Huhn exhibited at the Whitney Museum of American Art; the Corcoran Gallery of Art; the Smithsonian American Art Museum; the Baltimore Museum of Art; American University; George Washington University; Veerhoff Galleries; and the Norton Gallery of Art, among others. His works are held in the permanent collections of the National Gallery of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the National Museum of American History, and the Brooks Memorial Art Gallery.

Frame: 18 x 25".