Improvisation

1910–1912

The Izdebsky Salons and the Knave of Diamonds

With the Neue Künstlervereinigung Kandinsky took part in two international Izdebsky Salons in Russian cities, from December 1910 to May 1911; in 1910 and 1912 he also exhibited with the Knave of Diamonds.

1913

The Sadlers visit him in Munich

Michael Sadler and his son visited Kandinsky in Munich and bought several woodcuts and the abstract painting “Fragment for Composition VII” — Kandinsky's first works in a British collection; they were displayed in Leeds until 1923.

1914

The war: back to Russia via Switzerland and Sweden

The outbreak of World War I ended the Blue Rider's plans for further almanacs and exhibitions and sent Kandinsky back to Russia via Switzerland and Sweden; he returned to Moscow in 1914.

1914

The English translation of “Concerning the Spiritual in Art”

The book had been reviewed in the London Art News as early as 1912; in 1914 Michael Sadleir published an English translation and interest in Kandinsky grew quickly. Extracts appeared in Blast and The New Age.

1916

The break with Münter in Stockholm

The relationship between Kandinsky and Münter worsened through mutual tension and disappointment over his reluctance to marry, and formally ended in Stockholm in 1916.