Exploring the colour palette of Wasily Kandinsky: The case study of Spitz-Rund (1925)

The study and conservation of a painting by Wasily Kandinsky, titled Spitz-Rund and dated to 1925, was carried out at the Centro per la Conservazione ed il Restauro dei Beni Culturali "La Venaria Reale" 2018 and 2021. This work, owned by the Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea of Bergamo (GAMeC), was created with oil paints on cardboard, and later glued onto a wooden support. A first phase of the project entailed a thorough scientific investigation of the artist's materials and techniques by means of a multi-analytical approach, including both non-invasive and micro-invasive techniques. The present contribution discusses some of the most relevant results obtained from scientific analyses on Kandinsky's masterpiece. The painting stratigraphy and colour palette were investigated using multispectral imaging, spot XRF and in situ Raman analyses. Micro-samples were also taken and analysed with FTIR spectroscopy, Py-GC/MS, optical microscopy and SEM-EDX. Additional investigations using MA-XRF provided further insight into the distribution of various chemical elements, proving essential to deepen our knowledge of the painting and to integrate the information obtained from other analytical techniques. The study highlighted several similarities between Spitz-Rund and other Kandinsky's artworks and made it possible to gain a broader understanding of the artist's technique during the Bauhaus period (1922-1933).