Romantic Landscape

Loose, energetic strokes of blue, green, yellow, and red move across a mostly white ground, giving the impression of a landscape dissolving into pure color and motion. The scene resists clear outlines, suggesting hills, sky, or water without settling into any single reading. This piece, titled Romantic Landscape, was painted in 1911 and is held at the Lenbachhaus. Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944) was associated with Expressionism, and he also created the notable work Composition VII. One detail worth noticing is how the gestural brushwork seems to float freely against the open white space, letting the colors carry the sense of place rather than any depicted form. The painting rewards close looking, as each sweep of pigment adds to a shifting, atmospheric whole built from color and rhythm alone.