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Email to FriendSigned Marc Chagall, Lithograph, Moses from The Bible, 1956  |
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| Artist: | Chagall, Marc (1887 - 1985) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Moses from The Bible, 1956 |
| Medium: | Original Color Chagall Lithograph |
| Image Size: | 13 7/8 in x 10 1/4 in (35.26 cm x 26.04 cm) |
| Sheet Size: | 14 5/8 in x 10 1/4 in (12.09 cm x 26.04 cm) |
| Framed Size: | 33 1/8 in x 28 1/2 in (84.2 cm x 74.4 cm) |
| Signed: | This work is hand signed by Marc Chagall (1887-1985) in pencil in the lower right margin |
| Edition: | Numbered 30/75 in pencil in the lower left margin (aside from the unsigned book edition) |
| Condition: | Good condition with bright, saturated colors throughout |
| Gallery Price: Item# 1980 | Sorry, this item is sold. Please visit the rest of our Chagall fine art collection |
| Historical Description: | |
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This passionate and ardent portrayal of the Christian icon, Moses, is depicted here clutching onto the famed tablets of the 10 Commandments. Aptly titled, this was part of a series of illustrations of Moses for his collective thematic works, The Bible. Clouds of fuschia, pink, and red inundate Moses who is highlighted with brilliant shades of lapis blue and scattered, expressive lines. This piece is a wonderful example of Chagall's creativity and vision with this articulate and arduous process of color lithography. Perfected tones of ruby reds radiate into foggy hues of purple and pink set against bold blues and subtle greys; they all come together to form a humanized and characteristic portrayal of Moses whose iconography and history go hand-in-hand with the pair of tablets, shown here. Created in 1956, this color lithograph was featured as part of a series of 105 engravings made by Marc Chagall between 1930 - 1955 to illustrated The Bible, originally started by Vollard in 1930. Published by Verve, Paris and printed by Tériade, Paris on Arches paper, this work was created out of the edition of 75. Numbered 30/75 in pencil in the lower left margin, Moses is hand-signed by Marc Chagall (1887 - 1985) in pencil in the lower right margin. PROVENANCE: - From the estate of Gottfried Dietze Catalogue Raisonné & COA: 1. Gauss, Ulrike, ed. Marc Chagall - The Lithographs, La Collection Sorlier. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 126 on pg. 89. 2. Mourlot, Fernand. The Lithographs of Chagall, vol. I, 1922 - 1957. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 126 on pgs. 152 and 155; detailed on pg. 149. 3. Sorlier, Charles. Marc Chagall, The Illustrated Books, 1990. 'The Bible' listed and illustrated on pgs 62-81. About the Framing: | |
| Style: | Modern Master |
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Biography of Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall (1887 - 1985)
Marc Chagall was born July 7, 1887, in Vitebsk, Russia. From 1907 to 1910, he studied in Saint Petersburg, at the Imperial Society for the Protection of the Arts and later with Léon Bakst. In 1910, he moved to Paris, where he associated with Guillaume Apollinaire and Robert Delaunay and encountered Fauvism and Cubism. He participated in the Salon des Indépendants and the Salon d'Automne in 1912. His first solo show was held in 1914 at Der Sturm gallery in Berlin.
Chagall visited Russia in 1914, and was prevented from returning to Paris by the outbreak of war. He settled in Vitebsk, where he was appointed Commissar for Art in 1918. He founded the Vitebsk Popular Art School and directed it until disagreements with the Suprematists resulted in his resignation in 1920. He moved to Moscow and executed his first stage designs for the State Jewish Chamber Theater there. After a sojourn in Berlin, Chagall returned to Paris in 1923 and met Ambroise Vollard. His first retrospective took place in 1924 at the Galerie Barbazanges-Hodebert, Paris. During the 1930s, he traveled to Palestine, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, and Italy. In 1933, the Kunsthalle Basel held a major retrospective of his work.
During World War II, Chagall fled to the United States. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, gave him a retrospective in 1946. He settled permanently in France in 1948 and exhibited in Paris, Amsterdam, and London. During 1951, he visited Israel and executed his first sculptures. The following year, the artist traveled in Greece and Italy. During the 1960s, Chagall continued to travel widely, often in association with large-scale commissions he received. Among these were windows for the synagogue of the Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, installed in 1962; a ceiling for the Paris Opéra, installed in 1964; a window for the United Nations building, New York, installed in 1964; murals for the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, installed in 1967; and windows for the cathedral in Metz, France, installed in 1968. An exhibition of the artist's work from 1967 to 1977 was held at the Musée du Louvre, Paris, in 1977-78, and a major retrospective was held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1985. During his lifetime he also created popular lithographs, such as Maternity. Chagall died March 28, 1985, in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France.
"When Matisse dies," Pablo Picasso remarked, "Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what color really is." Picasso claimed he was not a fan of the "flying violins and all the folklore, but his canvases are really painted, not just thrown together." He followed up by saying, "There's never been anybody since Renoir who has the feeling for light that Chagall has."
The Haggerty Museum describes The Bible Chagall prints as showing "Chagall's fluid forms, dreamlike sense of space and unique style. In his choice of subject matter, Chagall reveals his reading of the Old Testament in its moments of triumph, sorrow, and prophecy."
