Otto Nebel (1892–1973) was a German Swiss painter, poet, and architect whose art joins language, color, and structure in a luminous expression of spiritual abstraction. A close associate of Rudolf Bauer and Hilla von Rebay, and a lifelong friend of Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, Nebel shared their belief that art could express the hidden harmonies of the inner world. Through von Rebay, the Guggenheim commissioned many of his works, support that sustained him through difficult years and affirmed his unique vision.
The Leir Collection, the largest private holding of Nebel’s art in the United States, includes many of his largest paintings, with a focus on oil on canvas. It reveals a large extent of his creative journey and celebrates his lifelong pursuit of harmony between spirit and structure alongside the visionaries who transformed modern art.
