Black Square

Black Square (Russian Чёрный квадрат) is a 1915 oil on linen canvas painting by the Kyiv-born artist Kazimir Malevich. The first version was completed in 1915 and was described by the artist as his breakthrough work and the inception for the launch of his Suprematist art movement (1915–1919). In his manifesto for the Suprematist movement, Malevich said the works were intended as "desperate struggle to free art from the ballast of the objective world" by focusing only on pure form. He sought to create paintings that could be understood by all, that would have an emotional impact comparable to religious works.

The 'Black Square 1915 was the turning point in Malevich's career and defines the aesthetic he was to follow for the most of remainder of his career; his other significant paintings include variants such as White on White (1918), Black Circle (c. 1924), and Black Cross (c. 1920–23). Malevich painted three other versions of the Black Square, in 1923, 1929, and between the late 1920s and early 1930s. Each version differs slightly in size and texture.

The original Black Square was first shown at The Last Futurist Exhibition 0,10 in 1915. The last is thought to have been painted during the late 1920s or early 1930s. Malevic described the 1915 painting is as the "zero point of painting"; since then it and it has had a significant influence on minimalist art.