CHAGALL
Marc Chagall was born in 1887 in Vitebsk, Belarus, to a Hassidic Jewish family. He was part of the artistic avant-garde revolutions in Paris, from 1911 to 1914, and in Russia, finally settling in France with his wife, Bella, and daughter, Ida. Forced to leave his adoptive country by the rising tide of Nazism, he lived from 1941 to 1947 in exile in the United States, where Bella died suddenly in 1944. On his return to France, he lived in Orgeval, then Vence, before finally moving to Saint-Paul-de-Vence in 1966. Chagall is a painter of singular worlds, nourished by his origins and a profound humanism. He explored every artistic technique through the design of monumental theater sets, sculptures, ceramics, stained-glass windows, mosaics and tapestries. He died in Saint-Paulde-Vence in 1985, at the age of 97, after a long day working in his studio.
Colour and Music ambre Gauthier
CHAGALL
Marc Chagall was born in 1887 in Vitebsk, Belarus, to a Hassidic Jewish family. He was part of the artistic avant-garde revolutions in Paris, from 1911 to 1914, and in Russia, finally settling in France with his wife, Bella, and daughter, Ida. Forced to leave his adoptive country by the rising tide of Nazism, he lived from 1941 to 1947 in exile in the United States, where Bella died suddenly in 1944. On his return to France, he lived in Orgeval, then Vence, before finally moving to Saint-Paul-de-Vence in 1966. Chagall is a painter of singular worlds, nourished by his origins and a profound humanism. He explored every artistic technique through the design of monumental theater sets, sculptures, ceramics, stained-glass windows, mosaics and tapestries. He died in Saint-Paulde-Vence in 1985, at the age of 97, after a long day working in his studio.
Colour and Music ambre Gauthier
The Shofar, 1914-1915, ink, watercolor and gouache on gray paper.
The sources of music Chagall’s intense relationship with music is intricately linked to the artist’s early childhood. Born in Vitebsk, in Belarus, to a Hassidic Jewish family, he was influenced by the music of Russian culture and religious rituals from an early age. The singing and prayers he heard in the synagogue are central to his compositions, as reflected in the views of synagogues, yeshivas (religious schools) and even shofar blowers. His sister Lisa and his brother David were also portrayed as musicians, playing mandolins (or bandura), recreating a family atmosphere while becoming a recurring compositional element.
This work depicts a ritual music scene, a group of men wearing the tallith (prayer shawl) as they play. The main figure, in the center of the composition, is blowing the shofar, a traditional instrument used
during celebrations and holy days, notably Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, prior to evening prayers and after the fast. Behind him, two men are carrying the sacred Torah scrolls.
Street Musicians, 1907, India ink and gouache on paper.
In this intimate scene, painted when Chagall returned to Vitebsk in 1914, the perspective and geometric shapes reflect the influence of Cubism, while the shimmering palette and brushstrokes are more similar to the Fauvism that he assimilated during his stay in Paris.
Lisa With a Mandolin, 1914, oil on canvas.
I’ll be a singer, a cantor. I’ll go to the Conservatory . . . I had agreed to act as helper to the cantor, and, on holy days, to the whole synagogue, and I myself distinctly heard my sonorous soprano float upon the air. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
The Shofar, 1914-1915, ink, watercolor and gouache on gray paper.
The sources of music Chagall’s intense relationship with music is intricately linked to the artist’s early childhood. Born in Vitebsk, in Belarus, to a Hassidic Jewish family, he was influenced by the music of Russian culture and religious rituals from an early age. The singing and prayers he heard in the synagogue are central to his compositions, as reflected in the views of synagogues, yeshivas (religious schools) and even shofar blowers. His sister Lisa and his brother David were also portrayed as musicians, playing mandolins (or bandura), recreating a family atmosphere while becoming a recurring compositional element.
This work depicts a ritual music scene, a group of men wearing the tallith (prayer shawl) as they play. The main figure, in the center of the composition, is blowing the shofar, a traditional instrument used
during celebrations and holy days, notably Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, prior to evening prayers and after the fast. Behind him, two men are carrying the sacred Torah scrolls.
Street Musicians, 1907, India ink and gouache on paper.
In this intimate scene, painted when Chagall returned to Vitebsk in 1914, the perspective and geometric shapes reflect the influence of Cubism, while the shimmering palette and brushstrokes are more similar to the Fauvism that he assimilated during his stay in Paris.
Lisa With a Mandolin, 1914, oil on canvas.
I’ll be a singer, a cantor. I’ll go to the Conservatory . . . I had agreed to act as helper to the cantor, and, on holy days, to the whole synagogue, and I myself distinctly heard my sonorous soprano float upon the air. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
David, 1914, oil on paper mounted on cardboard.
It would be more interesting to paint my sisters and my brother. How I would delight in the harmony of their hair, of their skin, . . . intoxicating the canvases and you with the exuberance of my thousand-year-old colors. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
David, 1914, oil on paper mounted on cardboard.
It would be more interesting to paint my sisters and my brother. How I would delight in the harmony of their hair, of their skin, . . . intoxicating the canvases and you with the exuberance of my thousand-year-old colors. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
Rhythms and musical scores
In the 1910s and 1920s, Chagall was also influenced by the theater, contemporary music, photography and film. The symbolic approach of Latin, Cyrillic and Hebrew calligraphy, along with typography and color, revived his art, in which music was both an inspiration and a tool for organizing his compositions. This new visual language explored speed in a juxtaposition of time and space in sequences that freed up the musical rhythm of black and white.
The composition on a black background reveals figures in a negative format, highlighted with ink and white gouache: a soldier
called into battle and his wife, weeping as he leaves. The black creates accents atop the white, like musical notes on a score.
A Peasant Couple, Heading Off to War, 1914, pencil, ink and white gouache on paper.
Movement, 1921, ink on paper.
This self-portrait, one of Chagall’s iconic works, displays the vitality of his graphic rhythm and the musicality of color in paint. Portraying himself with a double profile, a recurrent theme in his work, he borrows from the Cubist, Orphist and Fauvist vocabularies. The hieratic composition, the work’s framing and background colors also echo those of Orthodox Russian icons. Self-Portrait (Head With Nimbus), 1911, oil on cardboard.
From near and far came the sound of cheers from thousands of soldiers. The frozen air absorbed the national anthem, transforming it at times into plaintive notes. Military bands played continually in several different places. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
Rhythms and musical scores
In the 1910s and 1920s, Chagall was also influenced by the theater, contemporary music, photography and film. The symbolic approach of Latin, Cyrillic and Hebrew calligraphy, along with typography and color, revived his art, in which music was both an inspiration and a tool for organizing his compositions. This new visual language explored speed in a juxtaposition of time and space in sequences that freed up the musical rhythm of black and white.
The composition on a black background reveals figures in a negative format, highlighted with ink and white gouache: a soldier
called into battle and his wife, weeping as he leaves. The black creates accents atop the white, like musical notes on a score.
A Peasant Couple, Heading Off to War, 1914, pencil, ink and white gouache on paper.
Movement, 1921, ink on paper.
This self-portrait, one of Chagall’s iconic works, displays the vitality of his graphic rhythm and the musicality of color in paint. Portraying himself with a double profile, a recurrent theme in his work, he borrows from the Cubist, Orphist and Fauvist vocabularies. The hieratic composition, the work’s framing and background colors also echo those of Orthodox Russian icons. Self-Portrait (Head With Nimbus), 1911, oil on cardboard.
From near and far came the sound of cheers from thousands of soldiers. The frozen air absorbed the national anthem, transforming it at times into plaintive notes. Military bands played continually in several different places. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
Homage to Apollinaire, 1911-1912, oil, gold and silver powder on canvas.
You should not start with a symbol, but end up with one. Marc Chagall in Franz Meyer, Marc Chagall, 1964
Homage to Apollinaire, 1911-1912, oil, gold and silver powder on canvas.
You should not start with a symbol, but end up with one. Marc Chagall in Franz Meyer, Marc Chagall, 1964
Moscow Yiddish Theater The Moscow Yiddish theater (GOSET) was formed in 1919 in Petrograd and then moved to Moscow. Directed by Alexis Granovsky, the theater was a showcase of avant-garde Yiddish culture in Russia. Granovsky asked Chagall to create a “universal” scheme for the walls of the theater, thereby promoting the Yiddish language and culture by combining popular entertainment, music, rhythm, sound and color. Nine murals form what became known as “Chagall’s box.” Only seven remain: a monumental Introduction to the Jewish Theater (a mural measuring eight by three meters); The Wedding Feast; Love on the Stage; and four allegories (Music, Dance, Theater and Literature).
Salomon Mikhoels and Mikhail Shteiman in the play Mazel Tov, 1921.
Chagall designed the sets and costumes for several plays by Sholem Aleichem, who had created a new dramatic direction with his work. Mazel Tov takes place in a kitchen and features a traveling bookseller, Reb Alter, and a cook, Beyle. Conveying social and political messages, these popular plays helped to promote Yiddish culture in Eastern Europe.
Music, first mural, 1920, tempera and gouache on canvas. Dance, second mural, 1920, tempera and gouache on canvas.
One of the four allegories Chagall created for the Moscow Yiddish Theater represents a euphoric dancer, an image that combines Cubist and Supremacist elements with traditional Russian decorative motifs, like the floral adornments on his skirt. These monumental figures symbolize a convergence of the arts in a personal approach to a total art form. They establish a dialogue between the play, the actors and the audience.
Ah! Here is an opportunity to shake up the old Jewish theater, its psychological naturalism, its false beards. There on these walls, I shall at least be able to do as I please and be free to show everything I consider indispensable to the rebirth of the national theater. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
The Introduction to the Jewish Theater, the main panel in the decorative scheme at the Moscow Yiddish Theater, forms a dynamic manifesto on the political and artistic combat pursued by the theater. The frieze features a series of rhythmic sequences that can be read in either direction. From left to right, a violin player and a green goat; Chagall, carried by the critic Abram Efros and showing his palette to the theater director, Granovsky; in the center, the actor Salomon Mikhoels as an acrobat and musicians with a violinist whose head has flown off; a group of acrobats; and Bella and Ida greeting the artist and a violinist with a bird. Introduction to the Jewish Theater, 1920, gouache, tempera and white clay on canvas.
Ah! Here is an opportunity to shake up the old Jewish theater, its psychological naturalism, its false beards. There on these walls, I shall at least be able to do as I please and be free to show everything I consider indispensable to the rebirth of the national theater. Marc Chagall, My Life, 1922
The Introduction to the Jewish Theater, the main panel in the decorative scheme at the Moscow Yiddish Theater, forms a dynamic manifesto on the political and artistic combat pursued by the theater. The frieze features a series of rhythmic sequences that can be read in either direction. From left to right, a violin player and a green goat; Chagall, carried by the critic Abram Efros and showing his palette to the theater director, Granovsky; in the center, the actor Salomon Mikhoels as an acrobat and musicians with a violinist whose head has flown off; a group of acrobats; and Bella and Ida greeting the artist and a violinist with a bird. Introduction to the Jewish Theater, 1920, gouache, tempera and white clay on canvas.
Iconic figures Chagall’s work is filled with recurring figures that define his world and his artistic approach. The figures of the violinist, the wandering Jew, the musical angel and King David with a harp link the secular to the sacred, conveying the artist’s universal message. The vigorous rooster, an allegorical portrayal of the painter, expresses his visions of the world through song, a constant from his childhood in Vitebsk. The circus, a universal theme the painter used as a metaphor for the world, masks the tragedy of existence with laughter and farce.
The Rooster, 1947, oil on canvas.
The Wedding, 1944, oil on canvas
This painting was done in 1944, the year the artist’s wife, Bella, died, while the artist was living in exile in the United States. The theme of marriage harks back to traditions from Vitebsk. The bride and groom are portrayed under a traditional red canopy, which symbolically separated the earthly and celestial worlds. The orchestra, expressing the anxiety and urgency of war, is portrayed atop the scene, playing for the serenity of the couple. King David, the archetypal figure of the musician king in the Old Testament, is a recurring theme in Chagall’s work. Monumental and hieratic, he is depicted theatrically, wrapped in a red cloak and playing his harp in a composition of gold and brown.
King David, 1951, oil on canvas.
To My Wife, 1933-1944, oil on canvas.
The circus theme had been common in Chagall’s work since he first created a series of gouache paintings, the “Cirque Vollard,” in 1926 and 1927. The ring, acrobats, musicians and animals became metaphors for the state
of the world and the tragedy of existence. Designed for the lobby of the Frankfurt am Main theater in 1958, the Commedia dell’arte is a strong political denunciation in a country in the process of reconstruction.
Commedia dell’arte, 1958, oil on canvas.
For me, a circus is a magical spectacle that goes by and dissolves like a world. Marc Chagall, 1979
To My Wife, 1933-1944, oil on canvas.
The circus theme had been common in Chagall’s work since he first created a series of gouache paintings, the “Cirque Vollard,” in 1926 and 1927. The ring, acrobats, musicians and animals became metaphors for the state
of the world and the tragedy of existence. Designed for the lobby of the Frankfurt am Main theater in 1958, the Commedia dell’arte is a strong political denunciation in a country in the process of reconstruction.
Commedia dell’arte, 1958, oil on canvas.
For me, a circus is a magical spectacle that goes by and dissolves like a world. Marc Chagall, 1979
The ballets Marc Chagall’s strong artistic involvement with ballet began in 1942. Creating environments in which the dancers interacted with the space, including the sets and costumes, gave him the opportunity to pursue the work he had started at the Moscow Yiddish Theater. Aleko, a ballet created in Mexico City in 1942, was inspired by one of Pushkin’s poems, “The Gypsies,” with music by Tchaikovsky. In 1945, while in New York, he worked on Stravinsky’s ballet Firebird, a Slavic folk tale about a captive princess freed by a prince with help from an enchanted firebird. Finally, in 1958, with Daphnis and Chloë, a ballet in three scenes adapted from Longus’s pastoral novel with a musical score by Ravel, Chagall presented his vision of ancient Greece.
Costume for Aleko, 1942.
Bella Chagall, who worked with the artist creating the sets and costumes for Aleko, which was performed at the Palacio de Bella Artes, confirmed the influence of the dazzling Mexican light: “Chagall’s sets burn like the sun in the heavens.” Chagall in front of the backdrop for Act IV of Aleko, 1942.
Chagall working on the stage curtain for Act III of Daphnis and ChloĂŤ, Berthier studio, 1958.
Sketch for the stage curtain of Firebird, 1945. Sketch for the stage curtain for Act IV of Daphnis and ChloĂŤ, 1958.
The stage curtain for Firebird represents the captive princess, freed by the magic bird. In this work, Chagall is exploring one of his favorite themes: hybridity. The composition combines the
two figures in the form of a single entity with a dual profile, in which the mermaid princess transforms into a bird with wings outspread, displaying its magic against a deep blue background.
It is heartwarming and scintillating, it is touching and beautiful, as the eye plays in its fairy-tale depths and fairy-tale coruscations. You can fly in the sky, you can peer into a magic wood and see people living in a dragon. Edwin Denby, Dance Writings, 1945
Sketch for the stage curtain of Firebird, 1945. Sketch for the stage curtain for Act IV of Daphnis and ChloĂŤ, 1958.
The stage curtain for Firebird represents the captive princess, freed by the magic bird. In this work, Chagall is exploring one of his favorite themes: hybridity. The composition combines the
two figures in the form of a single entity with a dual profile, in which the mermaid princess transforms into a bird with wings outspread, displaying its magic against a deep blue background.
It is heartwarming and scintillating, it is touching and beautiful, as the eye plays in its fairy-tale depths and fairy-tale coruscations. You can fly in the sky, you can peer into a magic wood and see people living in a dragon. Edwin Denby, Dance Writings, 1945
The Garnier Opera ceiling In 1962, French Cultural Affairs Minister André Malraux asked Marc Chagall to paint the ceiling of the Paris Opera, replacing Jules Eugène Lenepveu’s decor, created between 1869 and 1871. This spectacular initiative was controversial and divided critics into two camps, the traditionalists and the modernists. The painter, then 77 years old, accepted the challenge. He created the 220-square-meter painted decor, like a monumental palette, as a tribute to fourteen famous composers and their works. Inaugurated on September 23, 1964, the ceiling created an interactive link between the stage, the singers and dancers, and the audience, thereby positioning modern art in the heart of the Opera.
The design for the Opera ceiling involved an intense, complex preparatory stage. For nearly one full year, Chagall made some fifty sketches using a variety of techniques (pencil, ink, gouache, felt pen, collage). The placement of the shapes and colors on the ceiling was determined in these drafts, so that the artist could assess the balance between harmonic and dissonant elements.
Marc Chagall working on his sketches for the Opera ceiling in his Vence studio, 1963.
Preliminary sketch for the ceiling of the Garnier Opera, 1963.
Material, textile, movement, space, architecture and rhythm, everything is part of the technique, everything becomes a vocabulary the artist appropriates to express his vision and his reality. Bella Meyer, Chagall et son approche scĂŠnique, 2012.
The Opera ceiling assembled on the ground for the first time, Meudon warehouse, 1964.
Ceiling for the Paris Opera.
The design of Chagall’s ceiling is a tribute to the great composers who had inspired his art and had been performed at the Paris Opera. The work is arranged in five compartments, each one a different tone. The blue is attributed to Mussorgsky (Boris Godunov) and Mozart (The Magic Flute); the green to Wagner (Tristan und Isolde) and Berlioz (Romeo and Juliet); white to
Once the model was entirely finished, Chagall then painted the 24 separate sections of the ceiling in the Manufacture des Gobelins workshops in Paris (canvases on a plastic support). These sections were then assembled in the Meudon warehouse, before being placed on the previous ceiling painted by Lenepveu.
What people sometimes say is unthinkable is possible.
Marc Chagall, speaking at the inauguration for the ceiling of the Paris Opera, September 23, 1964.
Rameau, linked to the Palais Garnier, and to Debussy (Pelléas and Mélisande); yellow to Tchaikovsky (Swan Lake) and Adam (Giselle); the red corresponds to Ravel and to Stravinsky, with Daphnis and Chloë and Firebird. The inner ring features Beethoven (Fidelio), Gluck (Orpheus and Eurydice), Bizet (Carmen) and Verdi (La Traviata).
I wanted to reflect in a single bouquet, as in a mirror on high, the dreams, the creations of actors and musicians; and below, remember the rustling of the audience’s clothes. Sing like a bird, without theory or method. Pay tribute to the great composers of opera and ballet. Marc Chagall, September 23, 1964.
The Opera ceiling assembled on the ground for the first time, Meudon warehouse, 1964.
Ceiling for the Paris Opera.
The design of Chagall’s ceiling is a tribute to the great composers who had inspired his art and had been performed at the Paris Opera. The work is arranged in five compartments, each one a different tone. The blue is attributed to Mussorgsky (Boris Godunov) and Mozart (The Magic Flute); the green to Wagner (Tristan und Isolde) and Berlioz (Romeo and Juliet); white to
Once the model was entirely finished, Chagall then painted the 24 separate sections of the ceiling in the Manufacture des Gobelins workshops in Paris (canvases on a plastic support). These sections were then assembled in the Meudon warehouse, before being placed on the previous ceiling painted by Lenepveu.
What people sometimes say is unthinkable is possible.
Marc Chagall, speaking at the inauguration for the ceiling of the Paris Opera, September 23, 1964.
Rameau, linked to the Palais Garnier, and to Debussy (Pelléas and Mélisande); yellow to Tchaikovsky (Swan Lake) and Adam (Giselle); the red corresponds to Ravel and to Stravinsky, with Daphnis and Chloë and Firebird. The inner ring features Beethoven (Fidelio), Gluck (Orpheus and Eurydice), Bizet (Carmen) and Verdi (La Traviata).
I wanted to reflect in a single bouquet, as in a mirror on high, the dreams, the creations of actors and musicians; and below, remember the rustling of the audience’s clothes. Sing like a bird, without theory or method. Pay tribute to the great composers of opera and ballet. Marc Chagall, September 23, 1964.
And now, on these walls my feelings are reflected, and my plastic dreams, by which I’ve tried to express the dreams of art and of our tumultuous times. And that should naturally be included in each word, in each brushstroke and in each color.
The triumph of music In the 1960s, Chagall worked on large architectural and decorative projects, giving him an opportunity to explore a new monumental scale—a personal quest that he described as “a search for a large wall.” In 1966, New York’s Metropolitan Opera commissioned two monumental murals from the artist for the Lincoln Center lobby on the themes of The Sources of Music and The Triumph of Music. Painted in the Manufacture des Gobelins workshop in Paris, the panels were then sent to New York, where they were inadvertently switched and installed in the wrong locations.
Marc Chagall, 1979
Marc Chagall working on the mural of The Sources of Music, in front of the final sketch, Manufacture des Gobelins workshop, 1966.
The Sources of Music, the predominantly yellow panel installed in the lobby on the right, represents King David with a double profile, playing a harp, in the center of a peaceful composition filled with musicians, animals and angels—evoking the sets created at the same time for the opera The Magic Flute. Orpheus fills the lower section of the composition. The use of fabric and paper collage on the preliminary sketch lets the artist organize the shapes and colors in a playful, colorful and sensory arrangement. Preliminary sketch for The Sources of Music, 1966, gouache, ink, pastel and paper and fabric collages on paper.
The predominantly red mural positioned on the left, The Triumph of Music, represents a victorious trumpet-playing angel in the
midst of a whirlwind that is sweeping up musicians, orchestra, dancers and imaginary animals in its wake.
Chagall painting The Triumph of Music, 1966.
Preliminary sketch for The Triumph of Music, 1966, tempera, gouache and collage on paper.
I painted bright walls! / I painted musicians, dancers on stage! / With blue, red, yellow. Play, sing, leap! / You are performing the role of the old king / With me. You have engulfed me / We laughed ’til we cried. Marc Chagall, “With blue, red, yellow” (1930-1935), Poèmes
The Magic Flute In 1964, a meeting between Rudolph Bing, director of New York’s Metropolitan Opera, director Günther Rennert and Marc Chagall was the spark for a new adaptation of The Magic Flute, a two-act opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Chagall was commissioned to design the sets and the costumes. Highly sensitive to the beauty of Mozart’s music and the story, which he viewed as a philosophical treatise, he worked on this project for three years, creating a magical yet dark universe in which two worlds, daytime and nighttime, collide. He designed more than 120 costumes, 13 backdrops measuring 20 meters high and 26 objects for the sets.
Chagall’s designs forThe Magic Flute, the artist’s first contribution to an opera, depicts a nature that is both lush and threatening, populated with hybrid creatures and imaginary animals. This initiatory tale brings together the characters of Tamino, the Queen of the Night and Sarastro, as well as the birdcatcher, Papageno.
Costume sketch for Papageno, the Queen of the Night and Sarastro for The Magic Flute, 1967.
Costume sketch for The Magic Flute, “The Ballet of Animals,” 1966-1967, pencil, gouache and watercolor on paper.
The Magic Flute In 1964, a meeting between Rudolph Bing, director of New York’s Metropolitan Opera, director Günther Rennert and Marc Chagall was the spark for a new adaptation of The Magic Flute, a two-act opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Chagall was commissioned to design the sets and the costumes. Highly sensitive to the beauty of Mozart’s music and the story, which he viewed as a philosophical treatise, he worked on this project for three years, creating a magical yet dark universe in which two worlds, daytime and nighttime, collide. He designed more than 120 costumes, 13 backdrops measuring 20 meters high and 26 objects for the sets.
Chagall’s designs forThe Magic Flute, the artist’s first contribution to an opera, depicts a nature that is both lush and threatening, populated with hybrid creatures and imaginary animals. This initiatory tale brings together the characters of Tamino, the Queen of the Night and Sarastro, as well as the birdcatcher, Papageno.
Costume sketch for Papageno, the Queen of the Night and Sarastro for The Magic Flute, 1967.
Costume sketch for The Magic Flute, “The Ballet of Animals,” 1966-1967, pencil, gouache and watercolor on paper.
Set design for The Magic Flute, 1966-1967.
Performance of The Magic Flute, 1967.
Of Bach and Mozart / I hear their breath that resounds / Myself, I become a sound.
Marc Chagall, “My Source” (1950), Poèmes
List of illustrations Cover Chagall painting The Triumph of Music (detail), 1966. © IZIS Bidermanas. Inside covers Marc Chagall’s signature. Marc Chagall painting The Harlequins (19381944), New York, 1944. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. To the sources of music Single page Street Musicians, 1907, gouache and India ink on paper, 28 × 21 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Lisa With a Mandolin, 1914, oil on paper mounted on canvas, 38 × 49 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. The Shofar, 1914-1915, ink, watercolor and gouache on gray paper, 26.3 × 32.7 cm. Paris, MNAM (AM 1988-160). © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNGrand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Two-page spread David, 1914, oil on paper mounted on cardboard, 50 × 37.5 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Rhythm and musical scores Single page Movement, 1921, ink on paper, 47 × 34 cm. Paris, MNAM (AM 1988-262 recto). © Centre Pompidou,
MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNGrand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Self-Portrait (Head in Nimbus), 1911, oil on cardboard, 20.5 × 18.5 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. A Peasant Couple, Leaving for War, 1914, graphite, ink, white gouache on paper mounted on cardboard, 18.5 × 22.8 cm. Paris, MNAM (AM 1988-177). © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNGrand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Two-page spread Homage to Apollinaire, 1911-1912, oil, gold and silver powder on canvas, 200 × 189.5 cm. Eindhoven, Stedelijk van Abbe Museum. © Stedelijk van Abbe Museum. Moscow Yiddish Theater Single page Mural for the Moscow Yiddish Theater, Music, 1920, tempera, gouache, white clay on canvas, 213 × 104 cm. Moscow, Tretyakov Gallery. © Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. Salomon Mikhoels as Reb Alter and Mikhail Shteiman as Chaim in the play Mazel Tov, 1921, photograph. Zuskin Collection, Tel Aviv. © Photo Archive, Tel Aviv, Zuskin Collection. Panel for the Moscow Yiddish Theater, Dance, 1920, tempera, gouache, white clay on canvas, 213 × 104 cm. Moscow, Tretyakov Gallery. © Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
Two-page spread Introduction to the Jewish Theater, 1920, tempera, gouache, white clay on canvas, 284 × 787 cm. Moscow, Tretyakov Gallery. © Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. Iconic figures Single page The Rooster, 1947, oil on canvas, 126 × 91.5 cm. Paris, MNAM, on loan to the Musée National des Beaux-Arts, Lyon (AM 1988-75). © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNGrand Palais / Philippe Migeat. The Wedding, 1944, oil on canvas, 99.7 × 74 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. King David, 1951, oil on canvas, 198 × 133 cm. Paris, MNAM, on loan to the Musée National Marc Chagall, Nice (DMBMC1990.1.4; AM 1988-78). © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée Marc Chagall) / Gérard Blot.
Aleko, 1942. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Chagall in front of the backdrop for Act IV of Aleko, 1942. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Chagall working on the stage curtain for Act III of Daphnis and Chloë, 1958. © IZIS Bidermanas. Two-page spread Sketch for the stage curtain for Firebird, 1945, gouache, pastel and pencil on paper. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Sketch for the stage curtain of Act IV of Daphnis and Chloë, 1958, colored pencils, India ink and glued paper, 32 × 41.5 cm. Private collection. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. The Garnier Opera ceiling
Single page Chagall working on sketches for the Opera ceiling, Vence studio, 1963. Two-page spread © IZIS Bidermanas. To My Wife, 1933-1944, Sketch of the Garnier oil on canvas, Opera ceiling, 1963, pastel, 130.2 × 194.8 cm. Paris, felt pen and India ink, MNAM (AM 2946P). fabric glued to paper, © Centre Pompidou, dia. 33.5 cm. © Archives MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN- Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Grand Palais / Bertrand Prévost. Two-page spread Commedia dell’arte, The Opera ceiling 1958, oil on canvas, assembled on the ground 255 × 400 cm. Frankfurtfor the first time, Meudon am Main, Adolf und Luisa warehouse, 1964. Häuser Stiftung © IZIS Bidermanas. (Nr. 02025). Photograph of the Opera © Adolf und Luisa Häuser ceiling. Stiftung, Frankfurt am © Jean-Pierre Delagarde. Main. The triumph of music Ballets Single page Single page Chagall painting The Costume for a clown, Sources of Music from the
final design, Manufacture des Gobelins workshop, Paris, 1966. © IZIS Bidermanas. Sketch for The Sources of Music, 1966, gouache, ink, pastel and collage of paper and fabric on paper, 58 × 54.4 cm. © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris. Chagall painting The Triumph of Music, 1966. © IZIS Bidermanas. Two-page spread Sketch for The Triumph of Music, 1966, tempera, gouache and collage on paper, 109 × 91.5 cm © Archives Marc et Ida Chagall, Paris.
RMN-Grand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Single page Costume sketch for The Costume sketch for The Magic Flute, “Sarastro,” Magic Flute, “Papageno,” 1967, graphite, gouache, 1967, graphite, watercolor, watercolor, ink, fabric ink, fabric glued to vellum glued to vellum paper, paper, 34.7 × 26.2 cm. 34.8 × 26.2 cm. Paris, Paris, MNAM (AM 1988- MNAM (AM 1988-515). 494). © Centre Pompidou, © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNMNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN- Grand Palais / Philippe Grand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Migeat. Costume sketch for The Costume sketch for The Magic Flute, “The Ballet Magic Flute, “The Queen of Animals,” 1967, of the Night,” 1967, graphite, gouache, ink, pencil, gouache, watercolor, fabric glued to vellum ink, fabric, gold paper paper, 38.1 × 27.7 cm. glued to vellum paper, Paris, MNAM (AM 198851.9 × 34.8 cm. Paris, 511). © Centre Pompidou, MNAM (AM 1988-495). MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN© Centre Pompidou, Grand Palais / Philippe MNAM-CCI, Dist. Migeat. The Magic Flute
Two-page spread Set design for The Magic Flute, “The Temple of Wisdom,” backdrop for Act I, scene 15, 1966-1967, graphite, gouache, watercolor, ink, fabric, gold paper glued to vellum paper, 55.6 × 74.3 cm. Paris, MNAM (AM 1988455). © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMNGrand Palais / Philippe Migeat. Performance of The Magic Flute, 1967. © Louis Mélançon, Metropolitan Opera, New York.
This book was published in conjunction with the exhibitions “Marc Chagall: Le Triomphe de la Musique ,” at the Cité de la Musique / Philharmonie de Paris, October 13, 2015 to January 31, 2016; “Marc Chagall: Les Sources de la Musique,”; at the Piscine-Musée d’Art et d’Industrie André-Diligent in Roubaix, October 24, 2015 to January 31, 2016; and “Chagall: Colour and Music” at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, January 28 to June 11, 2017. Ambre Gauthier holds a PhD in art history. Her thesis on art gallery publications in France during the interwar period (1918-1940) presents a new interpretation of the links between the avant-garde movements, the publishing world and the modern art market. In 2010, she was asked to help inventory part of the Roberto Matta estate in Paris. She then worked at the Bibliothèque Kandinsky in the Centre Pompidou, on the inventory and work of Paul Destribats’ collection of art magazines, Le Fonds Paul Destribats: Une collection de revues et de périodiques des avant-gardes internationales à la Bibliothèque Kandinsky. Since 2011, she has been working with the Comité Marc Chagall in Paris. In 2015, she curated the exhibition “Marc Chagall: Le Triomphe de la musique” at the Cité de la Musique / Philharmonie de Paris. Department of illustrated books Nathalie Bailleux Gallimard Découvertes Series created by Pierre Marchand and Élisabeth de Farcy. Series editor Anne Lemaire. Art director Alain Gouessant. Picture editor Isabelle de Latour. Production Natércia Pauty. Press Béatrice Foti, with Françoise Issaurat. CHAGALL: COLOUR AND MUSIC Editor Anne Lemaire. Design and layout Alain Gouessant. Translator Lisa Davidson. Photoengraving La Station Graphique.
All rights reserved © Adagp 2015, for works by Marc Chagall © Gallimard 2015 Dépôt légal: September 2015 Numéro d’édition : 291032 ISBN : 978-2-07-010706-3 Printed in Italy by Cooperativa Lavoratori ZANARDI scpa.