The Waterfall

Patches of blue, green, red, yellow, and white interlock across the canvas, forming a loose arrangement of geometric shapes rather than a recognizable scene. The composition suggests movement and energy through its scattered forms, built up without a clear horizon or single focal point. Wassily Kandinsky painted this work titled The Waterfall in 1909, using oil on pasteboard, and it is now held at the Yale University Art Gallery, having entered the collection as a gift from the Société Anonyme Collection. Kandinsky, born in 1866 and died in 1944, was a Russian artist associated with Expressionism, whose later work includes Composition VII. Looking closely, the shapes seem to tumble downward in uneven blocks, hinting at the sense of falling water even as the forms stay abstract and detached from any literal depiction.