Wassily Kandinsky

J.B. Neumann, New York (acquired on September 23, 1936)
Nierendorf Gallery, New York (by 1945)
Nina Kandinsky, Paris
Galerie Maeght, Paris
Galleria del Naviglio, Milan (by 1960)
Toninelli Arte Moderna, Milan
Private Collection, London (and sold: Sotheby's, London, March 28, 1984, lot 348)
Acquired at the above sale by A. Alfred Taubman

New York, Museum of Non-Objective Painting, Kandinsky Memorial Exhibition, 1945, no. 217
New York, Galerie Chalette, Kandinsky, 1957, no. 16, illustrated in the catalogue
Milan, Galleria del Naviglio, Wassili Kandinksy, 1960, no. 11
London, Royal Academy of Arts, Kandinsky: Watercolours and Other Works on Paper, 1999, illustrated in color in the catalogue

Vivian Endicott Barnett, Kandinsky Watercolors, Catalogue Raisonné 1922-1944, vol. II,  London, 1992, no. 1199, illustrated p. 18

Executed on card mounted on card. There is some old frame rubbing along the extreme edge of the sheet. An artist pinhole in the upper right corner has been inpainted. A faint flattened crease running diagonally through the lower left corner. There is a thin surface scratch running across the rectangular form at upper left. Some very minor time staining, otherwise fine. This work is in very good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The whimsical composition and technique of Bagatelles, exaggerated by the dark retrospective background, is an enchanting example of Wassily Kandinsky’s mature Parisian oeuvre. Kandinsky’s entire production centered on the myriad effects produced by color and form, as explained in his own words: "Imagine a triangle, for instance. Does it seem to move? Where to? Does it move more cheerfully than a square? Is the sensation of a triangle like that of a lemon? What is most like the song of a canary, a triangle or a circle? What geometric forms correspond to philistinism, to talent etc...? What colour is most like the song of a canary? Which of these is most like the mooing of a cow: the whispering of the wind, a whip, a man, talent, a storm, rejection, etc.? Can you express your feelings about science, life, etc., through colours?" (quoted in Vivian Endicott Barnett & Armin Zweite, eds., Kandinsky, Watercolors and Drawings, Munich, 1992, p. 24).

In these later years, Kandinsky worked far more on paper than canvas. The present example demonstrates how these works on paper were conceived as fully finished masterpieces that bear all the hall marks of his idiosyncratic and irreplaceable style, with pastel hues and floating forms creating a sensation in the viewer particular to Kandinsky. The ability to skillfully handle graphic media was fundamental to Kandinsky’s conception of the artist. Writing in 1931, in the Journal des Poètes, he states: "to be able to devote oneself to it [art], one should be a good draughtsman, have a great sensibility for composition and colors and, most importantly, be a true poet" (quoted in Jean-Louis Prat, Wassily Kandinsky: Retrospective, Paris, 2001, p. 126).

After a failed attempt at reviving the Bauhaus in Berlin following the closure of Dessau in August 1932 by the National Socialists, Kandinsky made the decision to move with his wife to Paris in 1934. They settled in Neuilly-sur-Seine and, without the constraints of teaching, he was immensely productive. The decision to move was the right one, since many of Kandinsky’s paintings were included in the Entartete Kunst (Degenerate Art) exhibition that toured Nazi Germany. While in Paris he was loosely associated with the Surrealist and Abstraction-Création groups, with whom he shared an affinity for biomorphic and abstract shapes. Through Bagatelles one can read many of the elements that best defined his oeuvre, a connection underscored by previous ownership by Nina, the artist’s wife. The title itself, best translating to “trifle” or “trifling matter” in English, was the name the artist first ascribed to the fanciful and figurative watercolors he produced in the mid-1910s.