ca. 1925
Arnold Schönberg Center, Wien
In Schönberg’s own catalogue of his writings, he added the category “Nature, Physics, Animals.” Schönberg’s source of inspiration for the interpretation of natural phenomena was August Strindberg’s »Blaubücher« [Blue Books], referred to by the author himself as a “Brevarium Universale.” The volumes contain a series of reflections on subjects such as meteorology, chemistry, and physics. From the annotations and markings in Schönberg's “Blue Book” copies it is clear exactly which chapters he was interested in, including mainly scientific reflections by the poet, painter, alchemist, chemist and astrophysicist Strindberg:
Dark rays; Hydrogen, primordial matter or measure; The nonsensical composition of water; Chlorine, an unsaturated hydrogen oxide; Iodine, a 7-condensed H2O; Iodine and manganese; Iodine starch – Indigo – Berlin blue; The number of gold; Catalysis and reversible reaction; The atomic form in the crystals; Mercury as a hydrocarbon; Metallurgy of iron, Synthesis of iron; The metals inside; Calculate the composition of the metals; The Primordial Substance; Elements = Hydrogen Compressions; Contaminations = Transformations; Lues = Cadaverine = C5H14N2; Inorganic fermentation; What is radium; The origin of life; Symbolism and philosophy of prussic acid; Silica becomes coal; Chemistry of the blast furnace; Systems topple; Atomic weight and actual weight; Arsenic becomes sulphur and vice versa; Crystal angles and atomic weights.