''Upward'' (German: ''Empor'') is an oil on cardboard painting created in 1929 by the Russian abstract painter
Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky ( – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter and art theorist. Kandinsky is generally credited as one of the pioneers of abstract art, abstraction in western art. Born in Moscow, he spent his childhood in ...
. Painted at a time when Kandinsky was teaching art at the
Bauhaus
The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the , was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined Decorative arts, crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., ...
in
Dessau
Dessau is a district of the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the ''States of Germany, Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Until 1 July 2007, it was an independent ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, it now forms part of the
Peggy Guggenheim Collection
The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is an art museum on the Grand Canal in the Dorsoduro ''sestiere'' of Venice, Italy. It is one of the most visited attractions in Venice. The collection is housed in the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, an 18th-century ...
in the
Palazzo Venier dei Leoni
Palazzo Venier dei Leoni () is an unfinished palace in Venice, located in the Dorsoduro district on the Grand Canal (Venice), Grand Canal, near the Santa Maria della Salute basilica. The palazzo houses the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.
History
...
,
Venice
Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
,
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
.
Description
The painting depicts a set of geometric shapes assembled to suggest upward rising energy. In both the base of the central motif and in the upper right hand corner can be seen the capital letter E, possibly representing the initial letter of the painting's German name ''Empor''. A dot and horizontal line in the main semicircle suggest a human face; preparatory drawings indicate that these were late additions. The painting is reminiscent of the style of
Paul Klee
Paul Klee (; 18 December 1879 – 29 June 1940) was a Swiss-born German artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented wi ...
, who was Kandinsky's friend and colleague at the
Bauhaus
The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the , was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined Decorative arts, crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., ...
.
[ ]
See also
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List of paintings by Wassily Kandinsky
This is an incomplete list of paintings by the Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944). During his life, Kandinsky was associated with the art movements of Der Blaue Reiter, Expressionism and Abstract art, Abstract painting. Kandinsky is ge ...
References
External links
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*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Upward
1929 paintings
Paintings by Wassily Kandinsky
Peggy Guggenheim Collection