Fragment 2 for Composition VII

In June 1911, Vassily Kandinsky and painter Franz Marc (German, 1880–1916) founded an association of artists in Munich, Germany, called Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider). This informal intellectual and philosophical group focused on spiritual and symbolic issues in art, and many of its members, especially Kandinsky, believed that abstraction was the pathway to a utopian society and new spiritual age. They chose the color blue as part of their name because it is often considered to be the color of transcendence and spirituality. The rider can be understood to symbolize energy, joy, positive action, and transformation, and Kandinsky also believed it signified the group’s spiritual quest in art. “Fragment 2 for Composition VII” is one of Kandinsky’s preparatory studies for the final painting “Composition VII,” 1913. Other studies for “Composition VII” show that the composition originated in biblical themes of transformation, such as the Deluge and the Last Judgment, which reflects Kandinsky’s ongoing search for sources that would help him move away from the material world and toward the divine realm. Kandinsky’s emphasis on intuitive artmaking, along with his use of color and line as expressive subject matter, had a lasting impact on the development of art in the twentieth century.