A fantastic retrospective of the work of Kandinsky that I attended with two new friends at the Guggenheim Museum today.

There were a number of things that struck me while looking at the Kandinsky exhibition.

1. The majority of paintings were from his earlier period between 1904-1911ish.
2. Kandinsky started painting after he was 30 years old (reminds me a little of Matisse and also, Gauguin) and started out thinking his best work were his oils, and watercolors were just studies for the oils, but in time he grew to appreciate and value his works on paper as much as his oil paintings, and in some cases, they were superior.
3. Kandinsky should have moved to the United States in the late 1920′s or early 1930′s – he was offered several chances to come here – but declined – that was big mistake – and he spent the last 14 years of his life, suffering through World War II in Germany and France, with not that much to show for it (though his work continued to mature and refine.

I’m reminded of the Verist Art show I went to at the Metropolitan a few years ago (see Verism – German Portraits from the 1920s @ Metropolitan Museum of Art) and how Otto Dix, Max Beckmann, George Grosz, Karl Hubbuch, Christian Schad and Rudolf Schlichter were all part of all part of this fantastic show, and Otto Dix’s work was almost half the show (and half his life’s work, to be honest) yet it was Max Beckmann who became far better known than Otto Dix, or even George Grosz, or the rest.   Why?

I know why, and I recall thinking it two years ago – Max Beckmann, was smarter – he saw the war coming and came to the United States and started teaching – and through his work teaching here, many of his students became well known artists and enhanced Beckmann’s reputation even more.   Same thing with Hans Hoffmann, who also came here to teach from Germany.

But Kandinsky was stubborn – and turned down opportunity after opportunity – and suffered the consequences – my feeling is his work would have taken a different turn had he come here – I believe he was meant to spend his final years in New York  – and missed the boat.

I’m not saying his last works weren’t great – they were – but that’s not what we remember him for – the most interesting stuff he did, was in the early 1900′s.

I’m not blaming him – a lot people make mistakes – take a wrong turn – happened to Picasso, too – but I think it was clear as day to me when I saw the last two floors to the show at the Guggenheim, that Kandinsky was meant to come to New York, and to the United States, and continue his work here – he just could not break away from the familiar.

I got several ideas for my own work – when I get around to doing some more of it.