Marc Chagall
Esquisse pour tableau l'Opéra
1953  |  Oil on canvas

This vibrant oil is the genesis of a powerful motif that would later emerge in Chagall’s monumental ceiling painting for the Paris Opéra. Rendered in a glowing palette of red, orange and blue, the composition features an ethereal dancer in white in front of the iconic domed Opéra building. Hovering overhead, the famed sculpture La Danse, created for the façade of the Opéra, bursts with floral splendor. This work is a vivid ode to Chagall’s love of the opera and of Paris, where he would find artistic and personal refuge throughout his life.

Marc Chagall
Les boulevards
1953  |  Oil and sawdust on canvas

This magnificent oil is swimming with Chagall’s most iconic hues and symbols. At its center, a wide-eyed rooster with a luminous gold comb and fiery red plumage watches over Paris as it sleeps, as a pair of nearby lovers row their boat away from the city. These motifs were common representations of life, vitality and love for Chagall, and his signature electric blue gives this nocturnal vision an overall mystical, dreamlike effect.

Ferdinand du Puigaudeau
La fête foraine de nuit à Batz-sur-Mer
1905  |  Oil on canvas

Glowing with festive energy, Puigaudeau’s nocturnal scene captures the buzzing atmosphere of a crowded night fair in Batz-sur-Mer, France. His meticulous brushwork and vibrant palette bring the carnival tents, town architecture and streaking fireworks to life with alluring luminosity. Living on the Brittany coast after 1904, Puigaudeau was well-known for beautifully capturing the unique character of this region, masterfully blending Impressionism, Symbolism and Neo-Impressionism in his work.

Henri Martin
Venise, palais et gondoliers sur le Grand Canal
1909-10  |  Oil on canvas

Henri Martin, a renowned Post-Impressionist, painted this glowing scene on a trip to Venice in 1909. Rendering the morning sunlight over the Grand Canal, Martin uses his signature feathery brushwork and a wide range of colors to capture the distinct play of light on the city’s historic palazzos and waterways. Martin not only beautifully evokes the singular atmosphere and visual character of Venice, but he also masterfully imbues the work with a wistful air, reminding us of the fleeting nature of beauty and time.

Marc Chagall
La fuite: coq et bouc au dessus du village
1962  |  Gouache, pastel and graphite on paper

This moving work reflects Chagll’s deep grief over the destruction of his home village of Vitebsk during World War II. The village is represented in dark tones with an ominous orangey haze overhead. Yet in place of billowing flames, Chagall renders the floating heads of a goat and rooster, symbols of sacrifice and resilience for the artist. The church at the center of the village also defiantly shines in ethereal tones that echo the hues of the goat’s head, representing spiritual fortitude. Blending the harshness of reality with his dreamlike visions, Chagall masterfully reflects on both loss and hope.

Marc Chagall
Autoportrait du peintre
1975  | Oil, tempera and coloured ink on canvas

This contemplative self-portrait highlights the importance of Chagall’s memories and artistic practice in the formation of his identity. Set in a hazy blue dream world, the artist gazes downward at his palette as figures emerge from and swirl around his head. A woman holding a red bouquet evokes romantic notions, while the mother, children and donkey represent a playful scene of familial love. The painting reflects Chagall’s signature themes of love, memory and imagination, capturing the vivid connection between the artist’s inner world and his compositions.

Marc Chagall
La joie du village
1964  | Gouache, pastel, pen, and ink on laid paper

This joyous painting unites some of Chagall’s most recognizable themes, bringing together his Jewish heritage, love of his home of Vitebsk and his enduring connection to his first wife Bella. Set beneath a peaceful night sky, the floating bridal couple hovers above their home village, accompanied by a beautiful floral bouquet representing love, a cockerel representing fertility, and a blue fiddler and green goat, both connecting to their shared Jewish heritage. Chagall revisits similar ideas explored in an earlier work in this section, La fuite: coq et bouc au dessus du village, but here celebrates fond memories of his home in an exuberant burst of color.

Marc Chagall
Musiciens sur fond multicolore
1981  | Tempera, gouache, colored ink and India ink and pastel on paper

A kaleidoscopic exploration of color and memory, this work features Chagall’s signature motifs: flying lovers, farm animals and musicians. Alluding to his Jewish upbringing and childhood in the rural village of Vitebsk, the painting intertwines familiar symbols of roosters, goats and donkeys with fiddlers and flutists in a dreamlike swirl. The work is a vibrant symphony of color and music, embodying the artist’s emotional connection to home and tradition.