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Lot Essay
This work is sold with a photo-certificate from David McNeil.
When Chagall arrived in Paris in 1910, the buzzing atmosphere of the French capital impressed the Russian artist, particularly that of the busy cafés. The various café-concerts were central to many Impressionist paintings by Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet or Renoir for example, but also for artists like Van Gogh or that of the Ecole de Paris. In the present lot, Chagall clearly shows that the café was not just a place to have a drink, more importantly it was the social meeting place for intellectuals and artists. As a foreign and new artist, it was important for Chagall to participate in these social circles. His first guide to the Parisian night life was the sculptor Ossip Zadkine who was familiar with Paris, having left Russia in 1905 and lived in France since 1909.
Amongst some of the artists' favourite cafés were the Dôme and the Rotonde, where Modigliani and Picasso often went. Other bars included the Baty, across the road from the Dôme and at the corner of the rue Delambre; the Vignourelles at the corner of Boulevard Raspail, and the Rosalie in rue Campagne. However, the café in Chagall's present work has not been identified.
(fig. 1) Café du Dôme, Paris.
When Chagall arrived in Paris in 1910, the buzzing atmosphere of the French capital impressed the Russian artist, particularly that of the busy cafés. The various café-concerts were central to many Impressionist paintings by Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet or Renoir for example, but also for artists like Van Gogh or that of the Ecole de Paris. In the present lot, Chagall clearly shows that the café was not just a place to have a drink, more importantly it was the social meeting place for intellectuals and artists. As a foreign and new artist, it was important for Chagall to participate in these social circles. His first guide to the Parisian night life was the sculptor Ossip Zadkine who was familiar with Paris, having left Russia in 1905 and lived in France since 1909.
Amongst some of the artists' favourite cafés were the Dôme and the Rotonde, where Modigliani and Picasso often went. Other bars included the Baty, across the road from the Dôme and at the corner of the rue Delambre; the Vignourelles at the corner of Boulevard Raspail, and the Rosalie in rue Campagne. However, the café in Chagall's present work has not been identified.
(fig. 1) Café du Dôme, Paris.