.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The Comité Marc Chagall has confirmed the authenticity of this work.
“It is a magic world, circus, a timeless dancing game where tears and smiles, the play of arms and legs take the form of great art” (quoted in Chagall: A Retrospective, J. Baal-Teshuva, ed., New York, 1995, p. 196).
Painted in 1970, Le cirque à l'Arc-en-Ciel celebrates one of the most enduring themes within Marc Chagall’s oeuvre—the vibrant, colorful world of the circus. Filled with an eclectic cast of characters, from a violin-playing clown with a goat’s head, to an acrobat balancing precariously on one leg in mid-air, the scene is bursting with the riotous energy of the performance, a rich, whimsical atmosphere radiating outwards into the viewer’s space. Chagall’s fascination with the world of travelling players had begun as a young man in Vitebsk, where he recalled seeing a family of acrobats performing in the street, attracting a small crowd as they executed their modest repertoire of moves. Upon his arrival in Paris in 1910, Chagall found himself dazzled by the intense sensory stimulation and sense of spectacle which characterized the city’s circuses, a sharp contrast to his previous experiences of the travelling performers, and soon clowns, acrobats, and beautiful young women carrying out stunts on horseback began to weave their way into his personal artistic vocabulary. Executed in bold swathes of iridescent color, Le cirque à l'Arc-en-Ciel perfectly encapsulates the frenetic energy which so captivated Chagall, its cast of players sparkling under the electric lights, as they twirl around the ring in a swirl of movement.
The circus had become an important aspect of the artist’s oeuvre in 1927, as Chagall was finishing his series of one hundred gouaches based on the fables of La Fontaine. The dealer Ambroise Vollard, sponsor of this project, suggested the artist undertake a second group of pictures, based this time on the theme of the circus. The resulting suite of gouaches, titled Le Cirque Vollard, were based primarily on sketches that the artist drew from Vollard’s reserved box seats at the Paris Cirque d’Hiver. Chagall often brought his young daughter, Ida, with him to see the performances, although Sidney Alexander noted that “Marc was as childishly delighted with it as Ida” (S. Alexander, Chagall: A Biography, New York, 1978, p. 292). These experiences awoke in Chagall a renewed appreciation for the circus, and he would return to his memories of the performances on a regular basis over the following half century, exploring the fantastical nature and irrepressible spirit of the circus in numerous compositions. Discussing his preoccupation with this theme, Chagall explained the appeal of this subject: “These clowns, bareback riders, and acrobats have made themselves at home in my visions. Why? Why am I so touched by their make-up and their grimaces? With them I can move toward new horizons. Lured by their colours and make-up, I can dream of painting new psychic distortions” (Chagall, Le cirque, trans. Patsy Southgate, in Le Cirque: Paintings 1969-80, exh. cat., Pierre Matisse Gallery, New York, 1981, n.p.).
“It is a magic world, circus, a timeless dancing game where tears and smiles, the play of arms and legs take the form of great art” (quoted in Chagall: A Retrospective, J. Baal-Teshuva, ed., New York, 1995, p. 196).
Painted in 1970, Le cirque à l'Arc-en-Ciel celebrates one of the most enduring themes within Marc Chagall’s oeuvre—the vibrant, colorful world of the circus. Filled with an eclectic cast of characters, from a violin-playing clown with a goat’s head, to an acrobat balancing precariously on one leg in mid-air, the scene is bursting with the riotous energy of the performance, a rich, whimsical atmosphere radiating outwards into the viewer’s space. Chagall’s fascination with the world of travelling players had begun as a young man in Vitebsk, where he recalled seeing a family of acrobats performing in the street, attracting a small crowd as they executed their modest repertoire of moves. Upon his arrival in Paris in 1910, Chagall found himself dazzled by the intense sensory stimulation and sense of spectacle which characterized the city’s circuses, a sharp contrast to his previous experiences of the travelling performers, and soon clowns, acrobats, and beautiful young women carrying out stunts on horseback began to weave their way into his personal artistic vocabulary. Executed in bold swathes of iridescent color, Le cirque à l'Arc-en-Ciel perfectly encapsulates the frenetic energy which so captivated Chagall, its cast of players sparkling under the electric lights, as they twirl around the ring in a swirl of movement.
The circus had become an important aspect of the artist’s oeuvre in 1927, as Chagall was finishing his series of one hundred gouaches based on the fables of La Fontaine. The dealer Ambroise Vollard, sponsor of this project, suggested the artist undertake a second group of pictures, based this time on the theme of the circus. The resulting suite of gouaches, titled Le Cirque Vollard, were based primarily on sketches that the artist drew from Vollard’s reserved box seats at the Paris Cirque d’Hiver. Chagall often brought his young daughter, Ida, with him to see the performances, although Sidney Alexander noted that “Marc was as childishly delighted with it as Ida” (S. Alexander, Chagall: A Biography, New York, 1978, p. 292). These experiences awoke in Chagall a renewed appreciation for the circus, and he would return to his memories of the performances on a regular basis over the following half century, exploring the fantastical nature and irrepressible spirit of the circus in numerous compositions. Discussing his preoccupation with this theme, Chagall explained the appeal of this subject: “These clowns, bareback riders, and acrobats have made themselves at home in my visions. Why? Why am I so touched by their make-up and their grimaces? With them I can move toward new horizons. Lured by their colours and make-up, I can dream of painting new psychic distortions” (Chagall, Le cirque, trans. Patsy Southgate, in Le Cirque: Paintings 1969-80, exh. cat., Pierre Matisse Gallery, New York, 1981, n.p.).