Wassily Kandinsky (December 16, 1866 – December 13, 1944) Russian-born French painter and theorist, is credited as the pioneer of abstract art. After leaving a successful career in law, Kandinsky studied art, eventually teaching the basic design class for beginners and the course on advanced theory at the Bauhaus School from 1922 until the school was shut down by the Nazis in 1933. His fascination with color symbolism and psychology as well as his Orthodox Christianity informed much of his work.