1 post tagged “marc chagall”

Show us something by your favorite artist.
Submitted by Miss Parker. 

My favorite artist, Marc Chagall, was unique in his style. He came after the impressionists, and his work almost seems to contain some surrealist elements at times, but he's pretty much in a league of his own. The reason why I love his work so much is that it's so inspired by deep personal passions, yet at the same time, is accessible to almost anyone.

Throughout his work (and there was much of it, including paintings, drawings, and even designs for buildings like the ceiling of the Paris Opera), certain themes and figures remain constant. The depiction of love is constant, with the male lover always Chagall himself, and the female lover always a likeness of his love of the time. Until her death in 1944, it was his wife and longtime love Bella, and it's from this period that my favorite of his works come. Though I love his work overall.

Another important theme is his rural beginnings in the village of Vitebsk, in what is now Belarus. Linked with this was his religion and heritage as a Jew. His family lived in the ghetto of Vitebsk, and his Jewish identity, which sometimes restricted his opportunities, was a lifelong theme.

Something else that permeated his later paintings is exile and loss. While his earliest work was done in Vitebsk and St. Petersburg, it was after coming to France that he ultimately began getting real notice and training. France became his home, and sadly, one that he had to leave when Hitler invaded.

He and Bella went to New York for several years, but he longed for France and for freedom.

There's much more to his story. He lived for nearly 98 years. But onto a few examples:

"Love", "Bonjour Paris", "Lovers' Dream"