Marc Chagall: Over the Rooftops of the World (1907-1917)
(Media, PA) As part of the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) Speaker Series, Delaware County Community College is proud to host Susan Goodman’s presentation of Marc Chagall: Over the Rooftops of the World (1907-1917) on Tuesday, April 12 from 11:10 AM to noon in the Academic building's large auditorium (Marple Campus). A reception will follow in the Art Gallery.
Guest Speaker, Susan Goodman, from the Jewish Museum in New York City, will discuss Chagall's formative years in Russia and Paris and will document how the artist bridged old and new worlds with his idiosyncratic vision and tradition-seeped iconography. This richly illustrated lecture will reveal the personal and stylistic development of the artist in his early years as a painter.
According to art historian, Michael J. Lewis, Chagall was considered the last survivor of the first generation of European modernists. For decades, he had been respected as the world's preeminent Jewish artist. Using the medium of stained glass, he produced windows for the cathedrals of Reims and Metz, windows for the United Nations, and the Jerusalem Windows in Israel. He also did large-scale paintings, including part of the ceiling of the Paris Opera. Chagall had two basic reputations: as a pioneer of modernism and as a major Jewish artist. He experienced modernism's "golden age" in Paris, where he synthesized the art forms of Cubism, Symbolism, and Fauvism, and the influence of Fauvism gave rise to Surrealism. Yet throughout these phases of his style he remained most emphatically a Jewish artist, whose work was one long dreamy reverie of life in his native village of Vitebsk.
The discussion and reception are sponsored by Miriam’s Well of Hadassah. Goodman will sign copies of her book, Chagall and the Artists of the Russian Jewish Theater, which may be purchased at the College.
For more information on this discussion and direction to the College, visit dccc.edu
Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts
The Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA), inspired by the Kimmel Center, launches the city’s art and cultural scene onto the world stage with a month-long festival offering performances, exhibits, and events designed to appeal to loyal fans and casual attendees. Based on the philosophy of collaboration, innovation, and creativity, PIFA, through its 100+ partners who represent every arts discipline, will offer a variety of programs including newly commissioned works, classical performances and exhibits, surprising partnerships featuring local and international artists, and exciting explorations of old, new, non-traditional, and emerging art forms. In homage to the incredible artistic energy of Paris 1911-1920, PIFA celebrates works from that era and new creations inspired by the period and its brashly innovative spirit. The Festival was made possible by an extraordinary grant from Philadelphia philanthropist Leonore Annenberg, whose vision for a city-wide celebration of the arts shaped the festival. PIFA takes place April 7-May 1, 2011. For the most up to date information, contact PIFA at (215) 790-5800 or visit pifa.org.
Bio:
Susan Tumarkin Goodman is Senior Curator at The Jewish Museum in NYC, where she has organized numerous exhibitions and written and edited many catalogues. Her exhibition catalogues on Russian art include: Chagall and the Artists of the Russian Jewish Theater (2008), Marc Chagall: Early Works from Russian Collections (2001), A Witness to History: Yevgeny Khaldei, Soviet Photojournalist (1997), and Russian Jewish Artists in a Century of Change, 1890–1990 (1995). On the subject of Israeli art, her books include Dateline Israel: New Photography and Video Art (2007), After Rabin: New Art from Israel (1998), In the Shadow of Conflict: Israeli Art, 1980–1989 (1989), A World of Their Own: Naive Artists from Israel (1987), and Artists of Israel, 1920–1980 (1981). Among her other publications are The Emergence of Jewish Artists in Nineteenth-Century Europe (2001) and From the Inside Out: Eight Contemporary Artists (1993). Goodman received her BA from The University of Pennsylvania and MA from Columbia University.
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