A theology of abstraction: Wassily Kandinsky’s ‘Concerning the Spiritual in Art’

On the hundredth anniversary of the first abstract painting of modern times, the rationale for abstract art offered by a pioneer of the genre, Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944), in his book Concerning the Spiritual in Art (1911), is critically examined. The principal influences on his art and thought ar...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Pickstone, Charles (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sage 2011
In: Theology
Year: 2011, Volume: 114, Issue: 1, Pages: 32-41
Further subjects:B synaesthesia
B ‘Concerning the Spiritual in Art’ (1911)
B Abstract art
B Kandinsky
B Wassily (1866–1944)
B Modernism
B art and spirituality
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:On the hundredth anniversary of the first abstract painting of modern times, the rationale for abstract art offered by a pioneer of the genre, Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944), in his book Concerning the Spiritual in Art (1911), is critically examined. The principal influences on his art and thought are discussed; in particular, what Kandinsky intended by the word ‘spiritual’. Theories about Kandinsky’s possible synaesthesia are reviewed and the historical context of his world-view adumbrated. Finally, the article offers a preliminary sketch as to what an ‘abstract’ theology (had theologians of the day followed Kandinsky’s lead) might have looked like.
ISSN:2044-2696
Contains:Enthalten in: Theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/0040571X10387346