Blue Rider

Kandinsky's early works, between 1900 and 1910, were largely impressionistic landscapes and woodblock prints. Impressionist paintings strive to capture the fleeting effect of sight rather than correctly describe it.

Kandinsky's most renowned artwork in the Impressionistic style is The Blue Rider. It is regarded as a watershed moment in his move from Impressionism to Modern Abstract Art.

The painting depicts a horse galloping through a rocky meadow, possibly carrying a second figure, possibly a youngster. Colors, rather than precise elements, are used by Kandinsky to depict the rider. Kandinsky would subsequently apply these tactics of including the viewer in the creation of the painting through imagination and the use of color for representation in his abstract works.

Year: 1903

Style: Impressionism

Location: Private Collection