Death and fire—the concept of necroinflammation

Tod und Feuer, Paul Klee 1940 (Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern, Switzerland, used with permission). In 1940, the German expressionist Paul Klee painted “Tod und Feuer” (“Death and Fire”). Oil on distemper on jute. With himself passing away on June 29 of the same year, it is today considered one of his final masterpieces. Klee at this time suffered from an autoimmune disease known as scleroderma. The disease heavily affected his joints and hardly allowed painless painting. Scleroderma is associated with the development of autoantibodies, the most common ones being anti-nuclear antibodies, and represents a typical example of a degenerative disease driven by necroinflammatio