In the Samara Regional Art Museum first opened a unique exhibition project «Marc Chagall. Biblical scenes », bringing together 100 of lithographs from the collection of German Kunstgalerien Bottingerhaus. This exhibition reveals the audience one of the major graphic series of the great artist - his illustrations of the Bible.

Despite considerable interest in the work of masters in the world, this series until now little-known wide range of viewers. It was conceived M. Chagall back in 1920, but then the artist in his own words, «did not see the Bible, and dreamed of it ». To «see» literary work, he had to touch behind this piece of living reality. In 1931, Chagall spent several months in Palestine, as well as in Syria and Egypt and impressions of this journey, which he called «the strongest in his life», gave impetus to the creation of 39 gouaches and then, partly based on them, a series of 105 etchings, completed in the postwar years. Unfortunately, the book, which had planned to release his employer, Ambroise Vollar, and remains unpublished. Vollar died, and the Second World War seemed to put a cross on the project.

In the post-time favorite graphics technology has become a Chagall lithograph - a color, as well as black and white. Lithography was almost complete analogy of painting in prints and is the best way to meet the peculiarities of the style of late Chagall, while providing the best opportunities for replication. After returning in 1942 to France, the artist joined the pre-war cycle of etchings in the Bible (published in 1956) a great series of color lithographs. In the same 1956 in the journal «Verweij» were published by 18 color and 12 black-and-white lithographs by the Bible, and in 1960 in the twin issues of the magazine - even 24 color and 23 black and white lithographs. As a result, a new cycle of extensive biblical illustrations.

artist leads viewers through his vision of the Book of Genesis, cycle on to the book of the prophets Abraham, limited to short, sometimes symbolic names work. Chagall lithographs created in something like the beautiful painted freely manipulating stain and loop continuously transition to another one, summing up the form, flattened space, and showing the players close up. In colored lithographs Chagal said holiday and directly-emotional language of paint. In the monochrome sheets fully manifest the magic of his own black and white. Images appear enveloped in silvery illumination or carries in the black bottomless depths.

As a modern artist, Chagall embodied in the biblical illustrations are equally earthly and heavenly, and the beginning of a real breakthrough undertook to sverhrealnomu, like combining the principles of New Time Art and the Middle Ages. On the other hand, the Bible, the remaining books for all people, possibly the first appearance of the monument of his Jewish culture. This is manifested in the appearance and plastic characters in ecstatic style of expressiveness, in the nature of Chagall mysticism, internally connected with the Jewish mystics.

Chagall was able to convey the inherent paradoxical combination of the Old Testament intimate connection with the deity of man and his infinite distance from the transcendent God. Biblical images of Chagall went beyond the book illustrations and become «Biblical Message», which the artist conveyed in all genres of his life. In July 1973, in Nice was inaugurated Museum Chagall - «Biblical Message», - devoted mainly to biblical theme in art.

All of the Bible series are accompanied by texts from the Old Testament. In addition to the biblical cycle of the exhibition is based on the exhibition presented a number of works from the most famous graphic cycles.

exhibition in Samara Regional Art Museum can be visited until December 14, 2008.

Source: artmus.ru