Marc Chagall
Sur le divan

Description

The motive of embracing lovers surrounded by colourful bouquets or even fields of flowers, as in the present work, was one that the artist treated from the l920 until his late work in the l970. It is assumed that the couple depicted are Chagall himself and his beloved first wife Bella, who died in 1944 but remained his great love forever.
The present work is a wonderful early example of this recurring motif, depicted in vibrant colours and with an angel hovering at the top left of the painting, appearing to bless the couple.
When Chagall came to France from his home town of Ljosna, he was impressed by the charm of French flowers. Chagall once said that when he painted a bouquet of flowers, it was as if he were painting a landscape. Here, Chagall’s masterful use of colour – the intense reds of the woman’s dress, the deep blues of the divan and the warm, bright greens, reds, pinks and blues of the flowers and, as a contrast, the shimmering white angel – is particularly effective.