1911
“Color is a means of exerting a direct influence upon the soul,” wrote the pioneering abstract artist Wassily Kandinsky. The Russian-born painter and theorist dedicated his life to using abstract compositions of form and color to express deep emotion as well as to depict the language of music through visuals.
Kandinsky was part of a crucial moment in art history — the early 20th century — that saw the rise of movements like Cubism. He embraced styles such as Surrealism and Fauvism and was a leading figure in bringing together Der Blaue Reiter (the name means “The Blue Rider” after one of Kandinsky’s paintings) in 1911, a group of avant-garde artists in Munich, including Paul Klee and Franz Marc, who explored spiritual concepts through their art as a response to the materialism of the time. Kandinsky also led courses on analytical drawing and color at the Bauhaus. He was appointed by founder and architect Walter Gropius to teach in Weimar in 1922. He taught at all three of the legendary school’s locations and remained with the institution until its forced closure by the Nazi party in Berlin.
The artist had the rare and unusual trait of synesthesia, the neurological ability to perceive things using multiple senses. In Kandinsky’s case, it was the gift of “seeing” music, and music appeared in every aspect of his work, including the titles of his series “Compositions,” “Improvisations” and “Impressions.” He once described the experience of painting using a musical metaphor: “I had little thought for houses and trees, drawing colored lines and blobs on the canvas with my palette knife, and making them sing just as powerfully as I knew how.”
While Kandinsky isn’t the first abstract artist — mystically inclined painter Hilma af Klint was making nonrepresentational art well before him — he certainly had the biggest impact on establishing the style. His paintings inspired the likes of Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and other Abstract Expressionists. From his Untitled (First Abstract Watercolor) painted in 1910 to future works, his unique take on using color and flair for bold, experimental compositions, Kandinsky is one of the most important figures of early-20th-century art.
Find original Wassily Kandinsky art, including paintings and prints, on 1stDibs.
Klänge: Weisser Klang Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910-1919
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original color woodcut 3.44 x 3.82 in (8.74 x 9.7 cm) Framed 15.75 x 16.25 in #113 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Klänge: Lyrisches Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910-1919
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original color woodcut 5.82 x 8.57 in (14.78 x 21.77 cm) Framed 17.57 x 20.19 in #98 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Klänge: Oriental Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910-1919
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original color woodcut 4.94 x 7.5 in (12.55 x 19.05 cm) Framed 18.44 x 21 in #106 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Klänge: Improvisation 7 Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original woodcut 7.5 x 4.88 in (19.05 x 12.4 cm) Framed 19.32 x 16.69 in #124 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Klänge: Improvisation 4 Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original woodcut 5.75 x 7 in (14.6 x 17.78 cm) Framed 17.63 x 18.88 in #117 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Klänge: Improvisation 1 Woodcut Print, Abstract, Framed, Circa 1910
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Original woodcut 5.5 x 4.5 in (13.97 x 11.43 cm) Framed 17.32 x 16.44 in #128 in the catalogue Raisonné of Kandinsky's Graphic Works by Hans K. Roethel
Woodcut
Wassily Kandinsky - Composition - Woodcut
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Wassily Kandinsky - Composition - Original Woodcut Condition: excellent 32 x 24 cm 1959 Published by XXe siècle, San Lazzaro Printed signature (monogram) in the plate Unnumbered as i...
Woodcut
"Improvisation 7" original woodcut
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original woodcut. (Catalogue reference Roethel 124). Printed in 1975 on Arches paper for the "Homage to Kandinsky" special edition of the art revue XXe Siecle. Image size: 7 ...
Woodcut
"Improvisation 7" original woodcut
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original woodcut. (Catalogue reference Roethel 124). Printed in 1975 on Arches paper for the "Homage to Kandinsky" special edition of the art revue XXe Siecle. Image size: 7 ...
Woodcut
"Motif aus Improvisation 25: The Garden of Love" original woodcut
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original woodcut. Catalogue reference Roethel 105. Printed in Paris in 1938 for the art revue XXe Siecle (issue number 3). Image size: 8 1/2 x 8 3/4 inches (217 x 220 mm). Sh...
Woodcut
Etching 1916 Number II
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in New York, NY
Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944), Etching 1916 Number II, drypoint, signed in pencil lower right, titled, numbered (No. 9) and dated lower left [also with initials and date in the plate lower right]. Reference: Roethel 154, only state, edition of 10. In excellent condition (the barest handling fold at sheet edge), printed on a heavy ivory wove paper, the full sheet with full margins, 4 7/8 x 3 1/4, the sheet 17 1/2 x 13 inches, archival mount with window mat. A fine fresh impression of this great rarity, printed in a dark brown ink. Kandinsky created this drypoint (erroneously named Etching 1916) in early 1916 while staying with Gabriel Munter in Stockholm during the winter of 1915-16. This is from the second series of drypoints he made; the first was in the year 1913-14. Provenance: Kornfeld Auction, Bern, June 2007. The tiny size of this edition (10) makes this print a great rarity within the Kandinsky’s printed...
Drypoint
"Motif aus Improvisation 25: The Garden of Love" - Original woodcut
By Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Paris, IDF
Vassily KANDINSKY Woodcut print Second edition for 'XXe Siecle' the first edition was done in 1938 Printed signature (monogram) in the plate On vellum 31 x 24 cm (c. 12.5 x 10 inc...
Woodcut
