Contents
Wassily Kandinsky
Pioneering abstract painting through colour, form and ideas drawn from music.
Concerning the Spiritual in Art · Composition VII
- Born
- 16 December 1866
- Birthplace
- Moscow, Russia
- Died
- 13 December 1944
More people
Wassily Kandinsky
Russian-born painter and theorist active in Germany and France. His work helped establish painting that did not depend on recognizable objects.
Early life
Music and colour
Grew up partly in Odessa and studied music as a child.
Leaving law
Trained in law and economics before moving to Munich in 1896 to study art.
Career
- 1896–1911
Munich experiments
Developed as a painter and co-founded the Blue Rider group with Franz Marc.
- 1914–1921
Work in Russia
Returned during the First World War and became involved in cultural institutions after the Revolution.
- 1922–1944
Bauhaus and France
Taught at the Bauhaus until its closure, then continued painting near Paris.
Selected work
Concerning the Spiritual in Art
A theoretical book connecting artistic form with inner experience.
Composition VII
A densely layered abstract canvas of sweeping colour and movement.
Composition 8
Geometric forms create tensions across a pale ground.
Beyond work
Artistic relationships
His partnership with Gabriele Münter and later marriage to Nina Kandinsky accompanied major changes in his life.
Exile and citizenship
Political upheaval repeatedly displaced him; he eventually became a French citizen.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and references ↗Biography and contributions ↗Photo: Vassily Kandinsky by Adolf Elnain Photo credits : Georges Meguerditchian - Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI /Dist. RMN-GP Image reference : 4N55985. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
