Yves Klein (1928-1962) was one of the leading figures of the Nouveau Réalisme art movement. He is perhaps best known today for his Klein Blue objects. During his brief life, he was also a pioneer of performance art, the most disruptive art movement since Cubism.

In 1956, he entered his "blue period." For Klein, blue was a unique color with the ability to make the intangible and invisible, such as space and the sky, visible. He embodied the sky by claiming to have invented its color: International Klein Blue (IKB), which he introduced in 1957. IKB ran like a blue thread through his work, which included several types of monochrome pieces made from various materials.
The earth is also a recurring theme in his work, appearing in several variants and forming a series with the general title "Planetary Reliefs."

In 1970, Yves Klein's widow, Rotraut Klein-Moquay, and Jan Runnqvist of Galerie Bonnier decided to complete one of his projects. In 1982, they produced an edition of 300 copies of La Vénus d'Alexandrie (Vénus Bleue). In 1990 it was the turn of “La Terre Bleue” to be produced in the same numbers. “La Terre Bleue” perfectly expresses Yves Klein's fascination with monochrome, the immaterial, space, and nature.