The works of the Jewish painter, graphic artist, scenographer and craftsman are often described as poetic, dreamy and fantastic. Despite all the imaginative elements in the pictures, Chagall’s art is always closely connected to what he experienced throughout his life. This is particularly noticeable in the works from the 1930s and 1940s, which this exhibition shows.
The life and work of Chagall was deeply influenced by National Socialism’s art policy and the Holocaust. In the early 1930s, his work examined the increasingly aggressive anti-Semitism in Europe, and in 1941 he emigrated from France to the United States. During these years, his artworks touch on central and current themes such as identity, homeland and exile. With over 50 paintings and works on paper, this exhibition gives us an insight into the artist’s search for a visual language in the face of deportation and persecution. It presents important works from the 1930s, a time when Chagall focused more and more on the Jewish world and oriented himself towards allegorical and biblical themes. The exhibition also deals with the longing and nostalgia he felt for his hometown of Vitebsk, which is located in present-day Belarus.
With this exhibition, we want to give the public a new and highly relevant view of the work of one of the most important artists of the twentieth century. The works in the exhibition are testimony to a world in upheaval.
