Sunday, November 6, 2011

Painter of Dreams

"In our life there is a single color, as on an artist's palette, which provides the meaning of life and art.
It is the color of love."
                                      - Marc Chagall








The genius of Marc Chagall's work is undeniable.  What is more amazing to me, though, is his story. As a young boy in the Russian Empire, Marc knew nothing of art. His family was fairly poor, and they worked very hard  to keep all nine children warm and fed. He discovered "art" when he saw a schoolmate's drawings. Marc tried sketching, and found that he was quite good at it. His passion only grew, and he realized that this was his path in life. The local art teacher took this talented and curious boy under his wing, and taught him the basics of realistic painting. But realism did not interest this dreamer.





By age 23, Marc had made it to Paris. His dream had come true, and he was happy "just breathing the Parisian air". He also studied art intensively, and began to formulate his unique avant-garde style. Chagall was one of the greatest influences on the birth of the Surrealist movement.


He loved painting Paris





He loved painting his home town


Guess where the title (not the story) of The Fiddler On the Roof musical comes from? 




And he loved painting his beloved...Bella














"Only love interests me, and I am only in contact with things that revolve around love."
- Chagall



Later in life, Chagall had worked with almost every artistic medium. 


Stained Glass

                                              



Stage Sets








Murals..this one is at the Paris Opera






He was a visionary, a genius, a romantic, a painter of dreams. He lived and painted freely, and never lost that spark of wonder, despite extraordinarily difficult hardships and losses. I encourage anyone who would like to learn more about this fascinating, inspirational man, to look HERE. There are quite a few resources to choose from.







Chagall's dream-like and poetic visual masterpieces remind me of the magic of the incredibly talented poet, artist, and dear friend..Anita at Castles Crowns and Cottages...please visit her beautiful world. Congratulations, Anita, on the opening of your spectacular Etsy shop!

Being the romantic that I am, the enchanting post at Bilancia Designs took my breath away! The wonderful Lisa is a very gifted artist...please visit her magical dreamland!

                                        
Wishing everyone a beautiful week....



21 comments:

  1. Hello Irina:
    Although we have long admired the work of Chagall, we did not before now know very much about his background nor that he came from such very impoverished circumstances. He is, as represented through his paintings, the greatest of all dreamers which, of course, always reveal more in repayment for detailed study. This has been a wonderful post which we have so much enjoyed and which has inspired us to go away and look further into the life and times of the artist.

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  2. Hello dear Irinia...I didn't know all this detail...thank you for sharing...Also thank you for popping in with some very kind words...they just made me feel so good...always lovely to see you...Wishing you a wonderful week...Dzintra xo

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  3. OH DEAR.....you always, always INSPIRE ME!!!! AND..Lisa is just a phenomenal artist. You know that she handwrites all of her cards? Oh dear, this post is speaking volumes to me right now, for I remember and wrote down a very special quote that you gave me from Chagall. I also see his STAGING art, which I have a tendency to do, and I need to think of something to do for my little theatre. Oh the world of art...what would we do without it? WITHOUT EACH OTHER? THIS IS PERFECT FOR ME TODAY, as I sit here, trying to be still so I can get rested up!

    MUCH LOVE AND THANKS for this post that speaks LOVE.

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  4. Goodmorning Irina!Such a beautiful blog.I so enjoyed learning about this man and his artwork.I will have to go and visit the blog you recommend.I love art.

    Thanks for visiting always and leaving such nice comments for me.Always so nice to hear from you my friend.Blessings for a nice new week!

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  5. Thank you so much for all your kind words and how wonderful to be included in your beautiful post! I am truly honored!
    I am very familiar with Chagall's work...but I must admit to loving his profound quotes even more. What PASSION this man had! It prevents itself in every single thing he has said or created....
    ...And YES! Anita has that same intense passion that captivates us all. I simply ADORE her and I am so blessed to have her in my life...
    Thank you for making my day so special...
    Wishing you a beautiful week~
    Lisa xo

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  6. Irina
    Thank you for sharing the work of this wonder artist. Oh how I sometimes wish I had such a frame of mind and freedom. If it wasn't for Anita, I wonder if I would be close to either at all.
    Ruben

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  7. Hello Irina,
    Hope you have had a wonderful weekend dear one!
    I love the work of Marc Chagall,it's so dreamy and floaty, otherworldly. I would love to think this is how he saw the world, despite his humble beginnings, he still was able to see the beauty in life. I loved that the painting Julia Roberts gave Hugh Grant in the film Notting Hill was a Chagall, so beautiful!
    Thanks for enlightening me on his life. I did study him briefly at school, but forgot most of it.
    Much love and warmth to you!
    Di
    x

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  8. Hello Irina,
    Thank you for writing this most informative post. And also for showing these beautiful pictures from such a great talent.
    You may know that I am already a huge admire of Anita's work, she is indeed a rare gem!
    I have not seen Lisa's blog, so on your recommendation, I shall go there and visit her now :)
    I hope you have a wonderful week.
    With love, Abby and Spotty xx

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  9. Dear Irina ,
    I love the work of Chagall , but some details of his life are absolutely new to me. Genius ! Thank you for sharing and I hope you have bright days !

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  10. Hello Irina,
    You ARE a very dear friend! Thank you for your most generous comments :) I should perhaps have not written on my post about 'some friends', as everyone who I connect with through comments on blogs is a friend! I have followers who prefer not to comment, which of course is absolutely no problem. But without the exchange of comments there tends to be less of a connection. Anyway, I did not want to show any favoritism with my followers, so have changed the wording.... thank you for making me see what should have been obvious :)
    I wish you well and hope you are having a good week.
    Hugs, Abby and Spotty xx

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  11. My Black Sea Sister,
    You just made my day ; no , seriously - those beautiful kind words of positivity and of encouragement mean a lot to me since I am feeling kinda blue for no particular reason ...keep visiting ( I need to believe in myself again )

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  12. bonjour
    j'ai regardé votre blog cette nuit,je collectionne les images de verdines anciennes et la votre est magnifique
    m'autorisz vous a vous l'emprunter afin de la mettre sur mon blog??
    si oui,comment agrandir la photo??
    j'ai plusieurs blog et celui sue les gitans se nomme
    l'histoire de ma vie
    amitiés

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  13. Maguy-

    Bonjour! Merci pour votre visite a mon blog..
    Desolee, je ne parle pas tres bien le Francais, mais je vais essayer! :)
    Bien sur, vous pouvez utiliser les images..mais je ne sais pas comme on peut grandir les images.
    Vous avez des blogs tres interessants!

    Merci encore et bonne journee,
    - Irina

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  14. THankyou so much for sharing these amazings pieces of art. I feel inspired simply looking at them!

    -Laura xx
    http://wrinkleintimevintage.blogspot.com

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  15. Goodmorning Irina!Thanks for the little visit.Its always nice hearing from you my sweet friend.Have a lovely weekend.

    Blessings!

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  16. Hello again Irina~
    I just wanted to wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family.
    Lisa xo

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  17. My beloved friend,

    To see your comment at Castles completed my "table" of guests that I could spend an eternity with....bless you dear, dear sister! Anita

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  18. Sweet Irina, what a wonderful tribute to this incredible artist. I saw the ceiling at Palais Garnier only a year ago and it took my breath away!

    Thank you always for your kind comments and sweet nature.

    Bises,
    Genie

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  19. Hello again Irina ? How are you , I am thinking of you ; you have been missing for a while ... I hope you are enjoying a warm and gentle season !

    Love

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  20. Irina, dear, I never commented on this post, and Chagall is in my top 3 artists that I LOVE! In 2003 my daughter and I spent a month in Paris, and the Petite Palace held an huge exhibition of Chagall's works. Do you know that we were the first two people through the door on opening day!!! I really came over to wish you the very, very best 2012 and to thank you again for all the Cyber-Hugs we have shared this year!
    Love and Peace,
    dawne

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