With the 2015 X-ray research and discovery of multi coloured paint under Malevich’s iconic, seminal, 1915 Black square, a huge shift in thinking occurred for me. Firstly, the fact that such work was undertaken on the painting denotes its cultural significance. Not everyone has their paintings subjected to that kind of advanced and expensive treatment. It was obviously deemed worthy to further solidify the pre-existing power structures. Secondly, the use of seminal as a word made me feel uncomfortable. Seminal is related to semen and is another example in a long line of ‘powerful’ words that are masculine based. Its use also somehow diminishes the pre existing context of the time this work was made. That somehow the work broke a mould and is somehow better art. Thirdly, I wondered whether the painting is actually a black square anymore. If there is coloured paint under the surface then is it no longer black? Or do layers not matter? (Or was Malevich a psychic and so conceptually advanced that he knew his work would be exposed as a coloured square? Ha.)The 2015 photographic representations of the findings also didn’t present the square as a square but as a rectangle.
The publisher didn’t feel the need to present it as a square. If you are still reading at this point and didn’t know about this research please follow the link:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/news.artnet.com/art-world/kizimirmalevich-black-square-363368/amp-page

Read and consider the darker connotations this art work contains.