Vasilii Kandinskii Red Oval Analysis

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Red Oval Vasilii Kandinskii’s “Red Oval” is full of color, geometric shapes and objects that for many, could evoke a variety of different interpretations. Which is what caught my eye, it was a mystery to me and for many, at first sight, it leaves the viewer wondering about what is going on. This painting is mainly green in the background and has a large yellow square that seems to be pasted on a green page. Inside this yellow square is where the different colors and shapes reside. The first shape that caught my eye, was the crescent moon shape that looked like a large fish on the left side of the yellow box, highlighted with white which faded into blue points. This idea, led to a chain of other ideas about the piece. Eventually, I came to …show more content…

His early life was spent studying law and economics in Moscow but at the age of thirty, he dropped his life as a lawyer and economist to become an artist. His early work which was bright and vibrant with geometric shapes was influenced by his journey to the Vologda province where he studied the culture and people of the land. He returned and after going to painting school, he continued his travels through Europe, studying and was influenced by different art styles, and even began his own teaching job as an artist. Throughout the next several years he joined different groups, continued teaching, and was featured in a variety of exhibitions. In 1921, a few years after the conclusion of World War I he joined a Russian art group and became an active member until the Nazi’s shut down their group. The rest of his life was spent in Paris as an active painter (“Vasilii Kandinskii” 7) “Red Oval”, painted in 1920 is similar to the other paintings of his during this time. It is clear that during this time, many of his paintings contained a red shape, whether it be a square, oval, or even a red blob. At this time, around the end of World War I he was in Russia and with the Soviet army, or the Red army still being fairly active, I believe the red oval made an appearance in his art as a symbol of where he was at the …show more content…

The vibrant colors and geometric shapes catch my eye in each of his pieces. Each and every one, because they are so packed with shapes and colors could arise a great amount of interpretations from person to person. Although, with research, the interpretations are more focused and guided. Before research I believed that “Red Oval” was a type of landscape picture in a scrapbook, and after research I still believe that is what the painting is about but it now has meaning. Knowing more about his life, gives the painting meaning and gives the painting emotion which then translates onto the viewer. I believe this emotional attachment is what lures viewers to his beautiful

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