Wassily Kandinsky was born in Moscow in 1866 and was encouraged to learn music from a young age, playing the cello and piano. Though known primarily as a painter, music was his main inspiration. He studied economics, politics, and law at university rather than art or music. Kandinsky saw the arts as a hobby until later in life. He believed color was linked to musical harmony and used color in theoretical ways, associating different aspects of color with elements of sound.