Autumn in Murnau, 1908
o/p
32.3 x 40.9 cm
Wassily Kandinsky
"THE ARTIST’S LIFE IS NOT ONE OF PLEASURE. HE MUST NOT LIVE IRRESPONSIBLY; HE HAS DIFFICULT WORK TO PERFORM, ONE WHICH OFTEN PROVES A CROWN OF THORNS. HE MUST REALIZE THAT HIS ACTS, FEELINGS, AND THOUGHTS ARE THE UNDEFINABLE BUT FUNDAMENTAL MATERIAL FROM WHICH HIS WORK IS CREATED; HE IS FREE IN ART, BUT NOT IN LIFE." Kandinsky.
I think Kandinsky was so busy making the new painting that he rarely made the best. But, his goal was not to please me, that's for sure. Kandinsky, in his book Concerning the Spiritual in Art, 1911, theorized a periodic pyramid of the new in art. The main idea is that the vanguard of art, or the top of the pyramid, will be occupied in any given era by a precious few works that are ahead of their time. A very lonesome place is Kandinsky's summit, as by definition, no one else will appreciate or understand your work.
I find a few of his works do please me, and it is a good thing to study his take on Modernism and Abstraction. He was certainly a trend-setter and worthy of his star in art history.
Kandinsky at Wikipedia.
Tumblr blog dedicated to the man. Very nice resource.
Online University - extensive article and links.
Project Gutenberg - Concerning The Spiritual In Art. (I read mine via Kindle, which I do enjoy better than the PC screen.)
Kandinsky. Always Thinking.
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