Yellow Painting

In this painting, against a background of flat light yellow, a multitude of (predominantly) square and rectangular multi-coloured shapes are stacked up on on top of each other. Although Kandinsky is attempting to avoid naturalistic forms (like figures or landscape), a viewer could easily interpret this piece as a peculiar geometrical creature, balanced on two “legs” at the bottom of the piece. The combination of the cheery background and this odd animal-like formation makes the piece uplifting and perhaps even humorous. This piece was completed later in Kandinsky’s career once he had moved towards Abstract Expressionism, entirely rejecting the realistic form. Five years before completing this painting the artist had been teaching at the Bauhaus School, which also focussed on the pure forms of shapes and geometric-focus in their architecture and costume design.