Wassily Kandinsky
Pioneer of abstract art
Most quoted
"The artist must be blind to 'recognized' or 'unrecognized' form, deaf to the teachings of his time or the desires of his public. His open eyes must be directed to his inner life and his ears to the voice of inner necessity. Then he will seize all the means of expression from the outer world."
— from Concerning the Spiritual in Art, 1911
"The true work of art is born from the 'artist': a mysterious, enigmatic, and mystical creation. It detaches itself from him, it acquires an autonomous life, becomes a personality, an independent subject, animated with a spiritual breath, the living subject of a real existence of being."
— from Concerning the Spiritual in Art, 1911
"The true work of art is born from the 'artist': a mysterious, enigmatic, and mystical creation. It detaches itself from him, it acquires an autonomous life, becomes a personality, an independent spiritual subject, an animate being that lives, breathes, and has a real existence."
— from Concerning the Spiritual in Art, 1911
All quotes by Wassily Kandinsky (342)
Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.
The artist's hand, which, through the appropriate touch, causes the human soul to vibrate.
The artist must be blind to 'recognized' or 'unrecognized' form, deaf to the teachings of his time or the desires of his public. His artistic eye must be directed to his inner life, and his artistic ear must be open to the voice of inner necessity.
The spirit of the age is a spirit of profound inner unrest.
The artist is a prophet who points the way to the future.
Every work of art is a spiritual event.
The artist's task is to create a spiritual atmosphere.
The inner necessity is the only true criterion of art.
The artist who does not use color is like a musician who does not use sound.
The artist must be a revolutionary.
The artist is the hand that plays upon the human soul.
The artist must create a new world, not merely imitate the old.
The artist must be a bridge between the visible and the invisible.
The artist must be a magician, transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary.
The artist must be a child, seeing the world with fresh eyes.
The artist must be a scientist, experimenting with form and color.
The artist must be a philosopher, contemplating the meaning of existence.
The artist must be a poet, expressing the inexpressible.
The artist must be a musician, creating harmony and rhythm.
The artist must be a dancer, moving with grace and fluidity.
Contemporaries of Wassily Kandinsky
Other Visual Artss born within 50 years of Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944).