Not as famous as the Winter Landscape, painted in the same technique a year later, this work clearly shows the influence of fauvism on Kandinsky’s work; at the same time we can see his tireless quest for his own artistic language shown in this piece. The strokes are confident and broad, the color palette is bold; the represented space is conditional; the pinkish and yellowish snow sparkles in the rays of the setting dun, and the shadows are turning deep blue. The plot is intentionally quite simple so as not to distract the viewer from the main idea.

The summer of 1908, which he spent in Murnau together with Gabrielle Muenter, became a breaking point for Kandinsky. The breathtaking beauty of these places fare removed from the bustle of city life inspired Kandinsky to start looking for new ways in art. While continuing to monitor closely the successes of fauvists, Kandinsky worked diligently and consistently (as was his habit) on his experiments that bore first fruit in less than a year.

* The sketch was sold on May 8, 2018 at Christie’s in New York for USD 6.5 million.

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