Concerning the Spiritual in Art

Kandinsky restates and reiterates his points regarding the spiritual nature of art and the spiritual duties of artists. Art is born from deep inside the artist’s inner being. As such, it has an essential freedom, and the artist is accountable first and foremost to the inner need rather than to external reality.

The artist has a duty to improve and refine souls and to raise the spiritual triangle to higher levels. When this does not happen, materialism takes over, art becomes mere entertainment, and artists and the public drift apart. Before creating art, the artist must cultivate their own soul so that they have something meaningful to express. The artist must be humble, recognizing that they are the “servant of a nobler purpose” (54) and that they have the duty to repay the talent they were given. Art is not mere pleasure; it is hard work, and the artist’s power to influence souls implies a duty to spiritually uplift society through their work.