Kandinsky's thinking is strongly related to music and sound mainly through the composer A. Shöenberg. He is ranked among the artists whose work changed the history of art in the early years of the 20th century. Wassily Kandinsky is regarded as one of the originators of abstract painting, or abstract expressionism. In both his painting and his theoretical writings he influenced modern styles.

Born in Moscow in 1866, Kandinsky spent his early childhood in Odessa. His parents played the piano and the zither and Kandinsky himself learned the clarinet. The influence of music in his paintings cannot be overstated, even down to the names of his paintings "Improvisations," "Impressions," and "Compositions."

It was not long before his talents outgrew the art school and he began exploring his own ideas of painting: " ...I applied streaks and blobs of colors onto the canvas with a palette knife and I made them sing with all the intensity I could... " Now considered to be the founder of abstract art, his work was exhibited throughout Europe from 1903 onwards. This caused controversy among the public, the art critics, and his contemporaries. The question was asked many times, "how is this art?"

Kandinsky was an active participant in one of the most influential and controversial art movements of the 20th century, the Blue Rider group (also known as Blue Reiter), which he founded along with Franz Marc and the Bauhaus (an art schol). This attracted Klee, Geiniger, and Schonberg, other soon-to-be Abstract artists. Kandinsky continued to further express and define his form of art, both on canvas and in his spiritual writings.

Kandinsky continued painting until his death in June, 1944.

"The violins, the deep tones of the basses, and especially the wind instruments at that time embodied for me all the power of that pre-nocturnal hour. I saw all my colors in my mind; they stood before my eyes. Wild, almost crazy lines were sketched in front of me. I did not dare use the expression that Wagner had painted 'my hour' musically."

- Kandinsky after listening to
Wagner's Lohengrin

Materials Needed:

Mp3 player, here's a link to some free ones

speakers/headphones

your choice of art materials but use color (paint, computer, chalk, colored pencils, etc)

listen to these six mp3 songs, courtesy mp3.com

Criteria You'll Be Graded On:

1. Artwork represents the music chosen

2. Colors represent music chosen (bright, clashing, soft, blurred, cool, warm, dark, light, etc.)

3. Shapes represent music chosen (soft, hard, ridged, curvy, etc)

4. Turned in list of songs with three colors chosen

5. Turned in list of songs with three shapes chosen

Step 1: Listen to all six songs, find out which one you would like to do. While listening, close your eyes, and think about what colors come to mind...are they blurred and soft, bright and clashing, fun and spontaneous? Write down what colors you think go with each song. (Yes, you'll be turning that in)

Example: I've done this with the song My Piano Cries for You. Colors thought of: soft sad colors, blues, blue-violet, violet, different shades of all.

Step 2: Same thing, but think purely in terms of shape. Shape is ANY enclosed space. It can be a sagging balloon shape, a squiggle, a scribble, a box, triangle, etc.

Example: Shapes thought of with My Piano Cries for You: Long, flowing organic shapes, such as mud puddles, lakes, and teardrops.

Step 3: Start painting or creating with the song playing to help "inspire" you. Make sure that when you're turning in the project that you label it with the song you chose.