Dunkle Seiten 1931

Curator: Welcome. Before us hangs Wassily Kandinsky’s 1931 watercolor, "Dunkle Seiten"—Dark Sides. Editor: My first impression? Somber yet playful. These vertical bands of color seem to hold different visual narratives. The composition feels… compartmentalized, almost like distinct acts within a single play. Curator: Interesting observation. Kandinsky, deeply involved with the Bauhaus movement at this time, was very interested in geometric abstraction. Do you notice any shapes or symbols that resonate with you? Editor: Immediately, that stark red circle, bisected by sharp black lines, evokes an ancient sun or planetary symbol. Below it, the upside down crescent above what could be a figure? It feels ritualistic. Curator: Yes, and consider that Kandinsky sought to create a visual language, an alphabet of feeling. Geometric forms like the circles and triangles—each carry inherent spiritual weight. It is reminiscent of early Suprematist forms that carried within them the spirit of revolution and utopia. Editor: You are absolutely right. Beyond those loaded symbolic forms, look at how Kandinsky manages to make us believe this has depth simply with varying tones of a dark wash. We understand instinctively these are dark "sides". Curator: Indeed. And "Dunkle Seiten" isn't merely a title; it's an invitation. We are perhaps meant to see and feel that abstract forms tap into the subconscious and hint at some form of primordial wisdom or collective memory. Editor: I see how these arrangements are both abstract, yet seem to hint at forms. And how the shapes in one section appear completely separate and isolated from the others. It definitely makes you feel as if looking at something not quite whole, or maybe just fragmented. Curator: Precisely. We have this push-pull between what seems hidden in darkness and what is coming to light in these vibrant sections. Editor: Thanks for revealing all that. Next time I think of my own dark sides, maybe a bold geometric configuration will give me an out. Curator: May this abstraction of feelings guide us through seeing both our hidden selves and revealing something new about what has always been inside us.