Nina Kandinsky (Andreevskaya)

Nina Andreevskaya from early childhood lived in Moscow. His father died young, a girl brought up by a single mother. Nina completed two courses at university - history and philosophy. She always liked painting, poetry, music, but she especially never learned of the art. About the artist Kandinsky, of course, she heard - that time he took an active part in the cultural life of Moscow.

Their acquaintance was held in 1916, on the phone. And later Kandinsky confessed to Nina he fell in love with her voice. That same day, he wrote his watercolor «To the Unknown Voice». At the time of their meeting Kandinsky was almost 50, Nina - 17. "I was surprised by his stunning blue eyes ..." - Nina wrote later in his diary about his first meeting with Wassily. February 11, 1917 a couple married. The bride wore a white dress on the design of Kandinsky. Undoubtedly, many people thought that Nina was married to a celebrity. But she always said the opposite, saying that it was love at first sight. In support of this, she was his devoted wife of almost 28 years.

After the revolution the Kandinskys didn’t leave Moscow. They were living there, watching the birth of a new country. At the end of 1917 they had a son, Wsevolod, or Lodya as his affectionately called in the family. But the joy of his parents was short. In June 1920 there was a problem - Lodya died. It was a heavy blow, and since then, all children subject became taboo for the Kandinskys.
Life in the new Russia was becoming more difficult. And in 1921 Kandinsky left the Commissariat, where he worked the last few years, and bought a ticket on the train from Moscow to Berlin. Kandinsky fled from the cold, misunderstanding colleagues on the work, the memory of his son and also from approaching totalitarian regime.

The couple lived in Berlin in closeness. Despite the fact that there were many Russian artists Wassily deliberately refused to communicate with them. But every day they went to the movies - both adored cinema. Kandinsky soon offered a job in the Bauhaus - school, which was at the time a locomotive of modern art and design. The family moved to Weimar – the tiny provincial town, without any signs of the high life. Nina Kandinsky, young and active woman, of course, could not accept such a situation. She used all the possible reasons to be organized in their honor a small family party. That was the joy of her life.

After a few years, the school moved from Weimar to Dyussau. The creative life was in full swing there, and it was Kandinsky's most prolific period. But it ended in 1933, when Hitler came to power. He declared abstract art "degenerate". Bauhaus was closed, and the Kandinskys found themselves at a crossroads. They could stay in Germany, because they hadn’t been expelled. But how could an artist live in such atmosphere? Kandinsky decided to move to Paris. He was 67 at the time, she was - 35 years old.

But living in France thank to art was not easy. Paintings hardly sold, and it influenced on Kandinsky depressing. With the beginning of World War II the couple Kandinskys didn’t leave Paris. The occupation of the city didn’t affect the schedule of Wassily - he walked and wrote every day until July 1944. In December 13, 1944 Wassily Kandinsky died.

Nina was very well aware that the price of his paintings will soon grow. So she refused to sell paintings at once. After the war, she continued to live in Paris, in their home. She sold and bestowed paintings her husband to various museums, organized memorial exhibitions. In 1973, she published a book of memoirs "Kandinsky and me." In the early 70's she bought a chalet in Switzerland and moved there .The 2nd of September. 1980 her mountain cabin was attacked by robbers carried away all of her jewelry. The hostess was killed. The crime was never solved.