BILL MARTIN - Mendocino Art Center

Marc Chagall:
Biblical Dreamer
Marc Chagall was a 20th century multi-cultural and
multi-media artist. His art covered a wide variety of subject
matter. Chagall famously said, “Art elevates the soul of
humanity.”
From November 7 – 22, the Mendocino Art Center will
feature work by Chagall, concentrating on his biblical work.
He was quoted as saying, “I did not see the Bible, I dreamed
it.” The exhibit will show Chagall’s biblical scenes from both
the Old Testament and New Testament.
A PowerPoint presentation by Chagall collector and
authority Jerry Karabensh will show you how he used oil,
watercolor, ceramics, mosaics, etchings, lithographs, tapestries
and stained glass to bring the viewer closer to his God.
He said, “In arts, as in life, everything is possible, provided it
is based on love.”
Chagall was born an Orthodox Jew in Russia in 1885,
took up art in his late teens in Russia, and eventually moved
to Paris, where he became part of an art community that
included many notable artists. While not practicing Judaism,
he used many biblical themes in his art. He took Jesus as the
symbol of the Jewish people tormented by the world. One
of his most famous oils is the “White Crucifixion” which
hangs in the Chicago Art Institute. It was painted after
“Krystalnacht,” the Nazi attack on the Jews in 1937. He
spent some time in America during the Nazi occupation
of Paris, but returned to France after WWII and eventually
settled in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in southern France, where he
was buried in 1985. He worked on his art until his death.
One of Chagall’s most famous works is the series of
stained glass windows which he created, along with Charles
Marq, for the chapel at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem.
He also made lithographs of them which will be on display at
the exhibit at the Mendocino Art Center. The subject matter
of the windows is the Twelve Tribes of Israel as described
by Jacob in Genesis and Moses in Deuteronomy. Also on
display will be the book of Exodus for which he created 24
lithographs.
From Genesis to the Prophets and then on to Jesus in
the New Testament, Chagall used 97 years to make his point
and stated that “My sacred book is the Bible.” To quote
novelist Henry Miller, “He is a poet with the wings of a
painter.”
The Chagall exhibit will be preceded by a cocktail party
at the home of Jerry and Cathy Karabensh on the evening of
November 7th. Please phone 707-937-5818 ext. 12 for information.
Attendance at the exhibit at the Art Center will be by
suggested donation.
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