Russian Art

Malevich, K. S. "Red Square". 1915

Notes: Red Square, painterly Realism of a peasant woman in two dimensions Kasimir Malevich's "Red Square," a key image of Suprematism, was shown in 1915 at the 0.10 exhibition. Though eventually called Suprematism, Malevich's movement was originally nameless. Thus when "Red Square" of 1914 was first displayed, it was inscribed on the reverse: 'A Peasant Woman. Supernaturalism.' Clearly Malevich used the term 'supernaturalism' to capture the aura of this startling new work. The name "Suprematism" first appeared in the brochure Malevich distributed in conjunction with the St. Petersburg 0.10 Exhibition: "From Cubism and Futurism to Suprematism: New Painterly Realism." Malevich defined Suprematism as the "supremacy of pure emotion," which was realized pictorially in works consisting of simple, geometric shapes of primary colors set against a plain background.