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Lot Essay
When this work was painted in 1980, Chagall was one of the great living masters of the modern movement. Faithful to the inspiration which had fired his art from the beginning, he continued to paint with the same vigor and intensity he had shown throughout his life. Living in Saint-Paul-de-Vence at the time, he led a very peaceful and happy existence.
Fleurs et corbeilles de fruits sur la table embodies the joyful abundance and vibrancy, typical of the artist’s later works. A luscious bouquet of yellow perennials, two bountiful rattan baskets of oranges and lemons, as well as a terracotta pot of growing herbs and garden flowers, all sit atop a loosely constructed table, softly dissipating into the background. The lines of a large window dappled with sunlight are discernable at the left, placing the work within a concrete interior setting. Yet, the pots and baskets seem to levitate within this spring idyll of tiffany, sky and sapphire blues. This ethereal atmosphere is further enhanced by the presence of Chagall’s iconic floating lovers to the left foreground. The couple is in fact the artist himself and his beloved first wife Bella, who died in 1944, but remained a lifelong inspiration for the artist.
The abundance and freshness of the flowers and produce, paired with the fertile symbol of the interlaced couple, attest to Chagall’s artistic vitality and happiness during this period. The variety and vibrancy of pigments used in this composition also testify to Chagall’s great love for and mastery of color. Pablo Picasso once said: “When Matisse dies, Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what colour really is… Some of the last things he’s done in Vence convince me that there’s never been anybody since Renoir who has the feeling for light that Chagall has” (Picasso quoted in F. Gilot and C. Lake, Life with Picasso, New York, 1964, p. 282).
Fleurs et corbeilles de fruits sur la table embodies the joyful abundance and vibrancy, typical of the artist’s later works. A luscious bouquet of yellow perennials, two bountiful rattan baskets of oranges and lemons, as well as a terracotta pot of growing herbs and garden flowers, all sit atop a loosely constructed table, softly dissipating into the background. The lines of a large window dappled with sunlight are discernable at the left, placing the work within a concrete interior setting. Yet, the pots and baskets seem to levitate within this spring idyll of tiffany, sky and sapphire blues. This ethereal atmosphere is further enhanced by the presence of Chagall’s iconic floating lovers to the left foreground. The couple is in fact the artist himself and his beloved first wife Bella, who died in 1944, but remained a lifelong inspiration for the artist.
The abundance and freshness of the flowers and produce, paired with the fertile symbol of the interlaced couple, attest to Chagall’s artistic vitality and happiness during this period. The variety and vibrancy of pigments used in this composition also testify to Chagall’s great love for and mastery of color. Pablo Picasso once said: “When Matisse dies, Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what colour really is… Some of the last things he’s done in Vence convince me that there’s never been anybody since Renoir who has the feeling for light that Chagall has” (Picasso quoted in F. Gilot and C. Lake, Life with Picasso, New York, 1964, p. 282).