Kazimir Malevich’s painting „Black Square“ (1915) had a decisive influence on the course of artistic developments in the 20th century.

On the 100-year anniversary of the work, Irina Vakar has reassessed the evidence base around the painting and caused much excitement among art historians in the process. With art historical findings from X-ray imagery and pigment samples, a new story of its creation and interpretation has emerged. After the publication of the results in Russian, a German and English edition is now available.

Malevich’s abstract painting is not the sole focus―the book actually covers his complete oeuvre. For example, his theatre experiments, in particular the futuristic opera „Victory Over the Sun“ (premiere 1913), are linked to considerations on „Black Square“.