Which Artwork Changed Your Life? — Boris Pevzner
Wassily Kandinsky, Composition VI, 1913
LiveArt Co-Founder and CEO, Boris Pevzner, tells us about the artwork that ignited his childhood love for art that has stayed with him through to the present day.
At the tender age of twelve, we lived in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), a stone’s throw from The Hermitage, which happens to be one of the greatest museums in the world. I was rather lopsidedly into physics and the sciences, so in a vain attempt to shape me into a more well-rounded human being, my parents signed me up for a Sunday art history school for kids at The Hermitage.
I remember learning a lot about art at the school, but I don’t remember enjoying it: watching a parade of masterpieces flickering across a large screen, their beauty and depth trapped within the rigid confines of academic presentation.
Then one day, the instructor took us to the museum. We meandered through its labyrinthine hallways and exhibition spaces and finally found ourselves at a small alcove by the staircase. It was there I first laid eyes upon Kandinsky’s “Composition VI.” To my untrained eye, it appeared chaotic, a mere jumble of shapes and colors. Yet, it immediately drew my attention with an inexplicable, magnetic pull.
The story of Kandinsky unfolded before me — a man graced with the rare gift of synesthesia, embarking on a quest to translate the melodies of music into the visual realm. In his world, colors resonated with the chords of symphonies, emotions danced in geometric forms, and his relentless pursuit to detach abstract shapes from any literal interpretation nudged him toward the brink of madness. This narrative, vibrant and steeped in human struggle, seized my young imagination.
“Composition VI” was not just a painting; it was the gateway through which art surged into my life, pulsating with meaning and emotion.
It was a revelation, showing me the intense personal saga behind each brushstroke, the mental and emotional odyssey of the artist. This masterpiece reshaped not only my understanding of art but also kindled a lifelong appreciation and a deep, resonant connection with the world of the visual arts.
