Chagall, Marc

(1887-1985)

   Russian-born painter, sculptor, designer

   A leading artist of the 20th century, Marc Chagall was born in Vitebsk, Russia (now Belarus), studied art in St. Petersburg, and, between 1910 and 1913, in paris. He returned to Russia and, after the Russian Revolution of 1917, was director of the Art Academy in Vitebsk (1918-19) and art director of the Moscow Jewish State Theater (1919-22). In 1923, Chagall returned to France, where he spent the rest of his life, except for a period in the united States (1941-48). Known for his distinctive style, Chagall used color and form in a way that was derived partly from Russian expressionism and was strongly influenced by French cubism. This was already apparent in his early work (Moi et le village, 1910; La Violoniste, 1912; and Vue de Paris par une fenêtre, 1913). He also produced the print series Mein Leben (1922) in the same vivid motif. In addition to Jewish secular and biblical themes, Chagall's work combines recollections with fantasy and folklore (Le Songe d'une nuit d'été, 1950), and there are many prints illustrating other literary classics. Religious themes, however, prevail in many works, including a series of etchings done between 1925 and 1939 illustrating the Old Testament, and 12 stained-glass windows done for the Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem (1962). In 1973, the Musée National Marc Chagall opened in Nice, to house hundreds of his works. Among Chagall's pieces with secular themes are his Écuyères aux colombes (1960), depicting themes used frequently by the artist in both painting and ceramics—figures with flowers, birds, and other animals. Chagall also completed in 1964 a huge canvas to cover the ceiling of the Paris opera, and two large murals for the lobby of the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. Chagall died in Saint-Paul-de-Vence.