Exhibition “Chagall, the Venetian years. A Mediterranean renaissance” exhibition

Chagall's move to the South of France had a decisive influence on his painting. The light, the vegetation and the rhythm of life all contributed to giving him a freer, more sensual style, in which the magic of color was increasingly present. The Venice period was also a time of technical experimentation: ceramics, sculpture, stained glass, mosaics, tapestry... At this point, the artist multiplied his exhibitions and commissions. On the one hand, major projects around the themes of circus, music and dance were taking shape, notably in commissions for public institutions. On the other hand, Chagall continued his work on the Bible, initiated in 1930 with Ambroise Vollard's commission for the illustrated book Bible. Chagall completed this illustration work with lithographs published in the magazine Verve.

In the early 1950s, Chagall worked on a project for monumental works for the Chapelle du Calvaire in Vence. After the project was abandoned, the Biblical Message cycle (1956-1966) became the subject of the first national museum dedicated to a living artist, inaugurated in Nice in 1973. Work on the Bible continued with numerous commissions for stained-glass windows and mosaics, such as the one presented in Vence Cathedral, inaugurated in 1979.

The exhibition brings together paintings, drawings and original lithographs, sculptures and ceramics on exceptional loan from the Musée National Marc Chagall in Nice, complemented by works from the Musée National d'Art Moderne in Paris and private collections.
The exhibition is organized by the Musée National du XXe Siècle des Alpes-Maritimes in partnership with the town of Vence.