Chagall Discovered: From Russian and Private Collections

Shows rarely seen lithographs, etchings, drawings, and paintings by the Russian-born artist

A long-awaited Chagall exhibition at the Pushkin Museum in Moscowthe first major showing of the artist's work in the Soviet Unionmarked last year's centenary of his birth. This catalogue includes 150 marvelous full-page color plates, plus generous selections of his etchings for Gogol's Dead Souls , lithographs, drawings and photographs. In a perceptive essay, Bessonova, the museum's curator, observes of Chagall's floating lovers: "His figures soar happily or sadly, depending on the moral condition of the world above which they hover." She compares Chagall, who spent most of his life in France, to Henri Rousseau, another artist who brought forth the images of his daydream visions. Included also are a breathlessly lyrical reminiscence by poet Voznesensky and a foreword by museum director Antonova. This extraordinary tribute offers a fresh look at Chagall's many-sided career as moonstruck visionary, cubist-inspired ethnographer, chronicler of war and masterful caricaturist.
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