Marc Chagall, Die Bibel

Marc Chagall.
Marc Chagall, Die Bibel. 
Naubz an Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern, 1990.
Call Number: N 6999 .C46 A4 1990
Stacks, Golda Meir Library

As an eminent master of modern art, Marc Chagall's Russian Jewish identity was a wellspring of compelling imagery. Many of Chagall's works are devoted to the Bible, the teachings, stories and images of which have formed centuries of Jewish culture.

Marc Chagall's Bible (1931-39, 1952-56), originally published in Paris by Vollard, was an enormous project interrupted by the German occupation of Paris, and Chagall's subsequent escape to the United States. The finished Bible was comprised of two volumes and 105 etchings. Teriade later published a double issue of its journal Verve in English and French editions reproducing the entire Bible suite. The plates shown here are reproductions from the Verve edition.

I went back to the great universal book, the Bible. Since my childhood, it has filled me with vision about the fate of the world and inspired me in my work. . . I see the events of life and works of art through the wisdom of the Bible. A truly great work is penetrated by its spirit and harmony. . . Since in my inner life the spirit and world of the Bible occupy a large place, I have tried to express it.

As a Jewish artist, Chagall did not address issues of sin and prefiguration. Chagall's Biblical message, one of the first conjunctions of modern art with the text, was one of human understanding, tolerance, and love.