On White II 1923

Wassily Kandinsky created "On White II" using oil on canvas, and it is now housed at the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris. Here, shapes become symbols, and colors speak volumes. Take the arrows, for example. In antiquity, they represented direction, force, and even fate, as seen in depictions of Cupid. Observe how Kandinsky has transformed them into abstract pointers, disrupting our sense of space. They pierce through the canvas, creating tension, as a visual metaphor for the anxieties of modern life. The checkered patterns, reminiscent of a chessboard, evoke strategy, conflict, and the interplay between light and darkness, reappearing throughout art history from medieval tapestries to modern art. It is a re-emergence of archetypes in the modern psyche, filtered through the artist's subconscious. Ultimately, "On White II" is not just a painting; it's a visual experience. It invites us to consider how symbols evolve and endure, resurfacing across time in a continuous cycle of meaning and reinterpretation.