signed and inscribed “Epreuve d’artiste” in the lower margin
34 × 24.5 in (86.4 × 62.2 cm) (sight)
Auction Estimate:$25,000 - $35,000
Sale date:December 6, 2023
Price Realized
$31,200
(including Buyer's Premium)
Provenance
Private Collection, Toronto
Literature
Charles Sorlier, “Chagall Lithographe: 1974-1979, 1984”, volume V, Monte Carlo, catalogue no. M.715
Simonetta Fraquelli, “Chagall: Modern Master”, London, 2013, page 44
Marc Chagall’s dreamlike picture pays tribute to the ceiling of the Paris Opéra, unveiled in September 1964, with its monumental panels commemorating contemporary and historical figures while evoking the transformative power and beauty of art. Graceful couples, shown dancing or embracing, defy gravity beneath the towering opera as musicians play in the lower register, reflecting one of Chagall’s early Jewish teachings that one can achieve communion with God through dance and music. At lower left, a cellist, whose body appears to have morphed into the instrument, recalls his 1939 painting “Le violoncelliste” and a gouache dating to 1964. As in Chagall’s fresco and stained glass windows at the synagogue of Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, colour conveys spiritual significance: red for energy and joy, blue for peace and infinity, and green to symbolize love. Ultimately, this lithograph perfectly encapsulates what Paris represented for the Belarusian–born French artist: “light, colour, freedom, the sun, the joy of living,” or what he referred to as “lumière– liberté”.
