In this engaging exploration, Leslie Odom Jr., the acclaimed singer, actor, and musician best known for his role as Aaron Burr in Hamilton, discusses Kandinsky's Weisses Oval, a vibrant masterpiece created in 1921 that reflects the artist's lifelong fascination with the relationship between music and painting.
Rendered with the chromatic exuberance of his early Expressionism and the geometric precision of his Bauhaus experiments, Weisses Oval showcases Kandinsky's innovative spirit through a careful juxtaposition of rudimentary and invented shapes, warm and cool tones, and inward and radial movements. As Odom Jr. notes, the work is explosive, evoking a swirl of brass instruments and resonating with the boldness reminiscent of Coltrane's compositions.
Painted during a pivotal moment in Kandinsky’s career, just before his move to Berlin to teach at the Bauhaus, this piece stands as a beautifully articulated declaration of his transformative artistic vision. Odom Jr. reflects on how this artwork connects him to a specific time in his life, emphasizing the profound ability of masters like Kandinsky to transport us through time and inspire deep emotional responses. Ultimately, he conveys that art, much like music and theater, creates a frame that allows us to pause and appreciate the extraordinary beauty of existence.
