Lot Essay
The background of this work reveals Chagall's lifelong nostalgia for Vitebsk. Clusters of small cottages and prominent churches were amongst the main characteristics of a town which prompted Chagall to remark "I found my masters in [Vitebsk], at every step, in every event. I found them among the sellers at the weekly open-air markets, among the waiters in the cafés, the house-keepers, peasants and labourers. Around them wafted that extraordinary light of freedom that I had never seen elsewhere" (Chagall, My Life, Paris, 1931).
The painting once belonged to the celebrated collection of Mr and Mrs Leigh Block of Chicago. Amongst other important paintings in the collection were Chagall's Le Clown aux Fleurs of 1927, van Gogh's The Town Hall in Auvers on the 14th July, his Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Pipe and Gauguin's Contes Barbares of 1892.
The painting once belonged to the celebrated collection of Mr and Mrs Leigh Block of Chicago. Amongst other important paintings in the collection were Chagall's Le Clown aux Fleurs of 1927, van Gogh's The Town Hall in Auvers on the 14th July, his Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Pipe and Gauguin's Contes Barbares of 1892.