A fugue is a musical form and compositional technique of polyphony. It is based on the sequential repetition or imitation of the main theme in different melodically independent voices. This painting is probably Kandinsky's attempt to create a visual equivalent of the polyphonic form. Individual shapes and colors overlap, appearing in one place of the canvas only to respond with variations in another. A single plastic idea "runs" from one place to another, much as a musical theme in a fugue moves from voice to voice. The color accents resonate with each other. Kandinsky goes further - he imitates the very nature of the plastic gesture. An energetic motif in one place finds a response in another similar motif. Smooth and fluid rhymes with the like. The result is a complex yet harmonious visual polyphony.

The painting sold at Sotheby's in 1990 for $20.9 million.

Timeline

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