Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky as a child Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky as a child (c. 1874) by Raoult, J. X.Centre Pompidou
Born in Russia
Vassily Kandinsky was born on December 4, 1866 in Moscow to a well-off family. He was the son of Vassily Silvestrovitch Kandinsky and Lydia Ivanovna Tikheïeva.
Portrait of Wassily Silvestrovich Kandinsky Portrait of Wassily Silvestrovich Kandinsky (1901) by Gotlieb, B.Centre Pompidou
His father, a tea merchant, was originally from Western Siberia, on the northern border of Mongolia.
Portrait of Lydia Ivanovna Kandinsky and her son Wassily aged three Portrait of Lydia Ivanovna Kandinsky and her son Wassily aged three (1869) by Vichnevsky, F.Centre Pompidou
His mother was from the upper-middle class in Moscow, and his maternal grandmother, originally from the Baltics, was a German speaker.
Family group with Wassily Kandinsky Family group with Wassily KandinskyCentre Pompidou
His education was essentially provided by his aunt Elizaveta Tikheeva, his mother's eldest sister. Kandinsky would later go on to dedicate Concerning the Spiritual in Art to this highly cultured woman.
Elisabeth Tikheieva on a doorstep (c. 1900) by AnonymousCentre Pompidou
Education by his aunt in Odessa
His father's delicate health caused the family to move to Odessa, on the shore of the Black Sea.
Family group with Wassily Kandinsky Family group with Wassily KandinskyCentre Pompidou
Not long afterwards, in 1871, the couple divorced. Vassily stayed with his father. His mother remarried.
Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky, aged 8 Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky, aged 8 (1874-12-01) by YavorovskyCentre Pompidou
From 1876 to 1885, he attended school in Odessa and frequently returned to Moscow with his father for the summer holidays.
Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky aged 20 Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky aged 20 (1886) by Tchekhovsky, V.Centre Pompidou
Legal studies in Moscow
and study trip to the province of Vologda
In 1885, Kandinsky moved to Moscow to start his studies in law, economics and statistics at university.
He became assistant to his professor, Alexandr Ivanovich Chuprov, following his final exam in 1893.
Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky Portrait of Wassily Kandinsky (c. 1895) by Thiele, R.Centre Pompidou
At the request of the Imperial Society of Natural Sciences, Anthropology and Ethnography, he took a study trip to the province of Vologda in 1889.
The purpose of the trip was the study the survival of pagan rites and the practice of customary law amongst the Komis and the Permiaks, two related people of Finnish origin.
Notebook 1 (Travel to Vologda) Notebook 1 (Travel to Vologda) (1889) by Kandinsky, VassilyCentre Pompidou
The interiors of the peasant dwellings in the region featured bold colors, which left a lasting impression on him. Upon his return, he started to publish his ethnological reports.
Anya Chemiakin in the garden of the property in Moscow (c. 1890) by AnonymousCentre Pompidou
First marriage to Anna Chimiakina
Anya Chemiakin in Kochel with Daisy (1902) by Kandinsky, VassilyCentre Pompidou
In 1892, Kandinsky married his cousin Anna Chimiakina, whose family owned a large summer house in Akhtyrka, in the Moscow area, a place from which Kandinsky would draw a great many subjects for his paintings.
The Kushnerev printing house in Moscow (c. 1900) by AnonymousCentre Pompidou
After having submitted an essay on the legality of workers' salaries, Kandinsky gave up on completing his thesis and instead became artistic director of the Kuchnerev printing house in Moscow, at the end of 1895.
The Bolshoi Theater in Moscow (c. 1900) by Daziaro, J.Centre Pompidou
French art exhibition in Moscow
and performance of Wagner's Lohengrin at the Bolshoi Theatre
In 1896, Kandinsky had two defining artistic experiences which were to determine his professional evolution. At the French art exhibition in Moscow, he discovered one of Claude Monet's Haystacks, the non-figurative expression that left him astounded.
The performance of Wagner's Lohengrin at the Bolshoi Theater was another revelation, that of the idea of total art that was so dear to Wagner.
Wassily Kandinsky and Anya Chemiakin walking along a street in Munich (c. 1900) by AnonymousCentre Pompidou
He decided study painting in Munich, a flagship city where the artistic and intellectual circles were growing and evolving. He moved there in December with his wife, Anna.
