|
An Unforgettable Kandinsky Lecture
Only
once I
happened to
be asked to
give a
lecture for
children
from 7 to
10 years
old. There
was great
hesitation
on my part
… It
was in 1977
while I was
teaching
briefly at
Texas State
University
in Austin.
The great
lover of
art, David
Brauer,
asked me to
lecture
twice in
Houston
and,
"while
you're
there,"
also to
visit the
famous
private
Wilhelm
Scholê for
"young
geniuses."
There, I
was
overwhelmed
by the
motherly
Marilyn
Wilhelm,
who simply
"radiated"
love. I
also
observed
how 8-year
old
children
patiently
taught
7-year old
ones how to
recognize
and
appreciate
Cézanne,
Kandinsky
and
Picasso;
others had
enormous
fun playing
instruments.
"How
do you spot
those
future
geniuses?"
I asked.
"I
simply look
carefully
at the
parents,"
she
replied.
"Forget
the word
'genius'—it's
about
happiness,
art and
music.
Once,"
she went
on, "I
was even
able to
interfere
in a case
of child
prostitution."
"Mrs.
Wilhelm!"
I
protested,
"that
does not
exist, what
are you
talking
about?"
(Okay,
Europe
might not
have been
any better,
but was
certainly
more
secretive
at that
time.) In
any case,
out of
curiosity,
I accepted.
My
young
audience
turned out
to be
absolutely
attentive;
their
questions
were to the
point and
creative.
One I
remember
even now:
"What
did
Kandinsky's
grandmother
say about
his
abstract
art?"
I was impressed and had a lot of fun; the special preparation was worth it.
Surprises
In Texas I
met more
people of
German
origin—not
only Mr.
Trump, and
the
wonderful
and
idealistic
Mrs.
Wilhelm—but
also the
farming
relatives
of
Kandinsky's
longtime
partner,
Gabriele
Münter. To
Kandinsky's
surprise,
Münter had
spent two
years in
the U.S.,
where she
took many
photographs
of her
relatives
around
1900,
including
many in
Texas.
Bessie Allen with Jennie Lee, Mrs. Allen, Jerusha Allen.
Marshall, Texas.1899/1900. Photo by Gabriele Münter.
I, too, had Texas surprises: Once at a glamourous reception, from the end
of the table I heard a loud and dominant voice complaining over and over
again about a "dry hole." He seemed utterly miserable about that dry hole.
The others listened and hardly spoke—the elderly man seemed to be a big
boss. Naively, I asked my friend: "About whom is that man speaking?"
"Please Jelena, I know your English is good enough, you should ask 'About what is he speaking.' Don't you know, he is a millionaire who is drilling for
oil and… the last hole turned out to be a 'dry' one: a real disaster, he lost a
lot of money!!" (Excuse the digression, at the age of 85 this just happens.)
Who?
The understanding between the great lecturer David Brauer and myself
about Kandinsky was perfect; we learned from each other. But his
admiration for Tishen I could not follow, since I had never heard that
name. A young American artist? I did not dare to ask, since David assumed
that simply everyone had to admire this greatest of all artists. It took me a
long time to figure out that the old Italian, "Titian" (Tiziano Vecellio, c.
1488-1576), was pronounced that way, while Germans pronounce his name
"Titzian."
PS
This Texas experience brought me to Kandinsky's large collection of
children's art. We may even be seeing some of it in the exhibition catalogue
for the international Odessa [now Odesa] Salon. That was in 1911, a
precursor of The Blue Rider. In 1912 Kandinsky included more children's
art in The Blue Rider Almanac. He had such a warm interest in early
creativity. His love of children is not known nearly well enough, but is very
evident in his letters.
[Editorial note: The book of his letters—Kandinsky: Das Leben in Briefen,
1889-1944, by Jelena Hahl-Fontaine—is just out in German with the
English translation soon to follow.]
PPS
Also in Texas: Art Professor Vincent Mariani talked at some length about
the experimental Black Mountain College (BMC). Bauhaus teacher Josef
Albers had been invited to found the art department there, and so was
instrumental in bringing Bauhaus inspired instruction to the U.S. From his
post-Bauhaus home in France, Kandinsky corresponded with Albers during
the years Albers and his wife, Anni, spent in America. Most of the letters
were in German, Russian, and the last ones in French. This Albers
-Kandinsky correspondence is available in English: Josef Albers and
Wassily Kandinsky: Friends in Exile. A Decade of Correspondence, 1929
-1940.
|
