The Knifegrinder (Principle of Glittering)
1912–13 · Oil on canvas · Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven
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This print
About this work
- Artist
- Kazimir Malevich (1879–1935)
- Year
- 1912–13
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Original size
- 79.5 × 79.5 cm
- Collection
- Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven
- Movement
- Cubo-Futurism
A knife grinder works at his wheel, but his hands, feet, the blade and the staircase behind him are multiplied and splintered into dozens of overlapping fragments in blue, rust, green and metallic grey, as if the scene had been photographed many times in a fraction of a second. The repetition makes the eye feel the motion of the treadle and the flicker of light on steel, which the subtitle, Principle of Glittering, names. Malevich painted it in 1912–13, at the peak of his Cubo-Futurist period, when he was closest to the Italian Futurists' interest in speed and simultaneous movement. It is one of the most complex works of that phase, made shortly before he turned to pure abstraction. Katherine Dreier's Société Anonyme gave it to the Yale University Art Gallery in 1941.
This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
A knife grinder splintered into repeated fragments of blue, rust, green and steel grey, for a workshop, study or home office at 16×24 in black. A warm grey, white or deep blue wall; it pairs with The Woodcutter.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Exhibition poster of a Cubo-Futurism painting
- Era
- 20th century (1912–13)
- Orientation
- Portrait
- Palette
- cream & beige
- Mood
- classic
- Rooms
- study or library, home office, living room, dining room, dorm room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 16×24. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.
Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is The Knifegrinder (Principle of Glittering) in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was The Knifegrinder (Principle of Glittering) painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
