Historic Audio Clips

Rose-Carol Washton Long, "Kandinsky: Early Years," October 24, 1964
In 1967, Rose-Carol Washton Long, renowned Kandinsky scholar and former research fellow at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, explored Vasily Kandinsky’s move from a loose painterly style to the rigid geometric abstraction of the Bauhaus years. In this clip she discusses the impact of the time he spent in Russia in 1916, where he encountered the stark geometric abstraction of Kazimir Malevich, who, like Kandinsky, was influenced by Theosophy and sought to imbue his painting with spiritual and cosmic significance.

Hilla Rebay, "Hilla Rebay Lecture," December 3, 1952
In this clip from 1952, Hilla Rebay, founding director and curator of the Museum of Non-Objective Painting, the forerunner of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, speaks on the "command" between nonobjective and the objective, the first years of the Museum of Non-Objective Painting, and her childhood memories of nonobjectivity and spiritual "things."

Hilla Rebay, "Hilla Rebay Lecture," December 3, 1952
In a second clip from 1952, Hilla Rebay reminisces about her teenage years and her pivotal decision to pursue art rather than music.

Thomas M. Messer, "Address to the National Society of Arts and Letters," May 11, 1976
Thomas M. Messer, director emeritus, addresses the National Society of Arts and Letters on May 11, 1976. In this clip, he speaks about the history of the museum, the influence of his predecessors, and the development of the art collection.