Musical Images as a Reflection of the Artistic Universalism of Marc Chagall
69
meanings.” The essence of “universalism of integrity”
lies in the
systemacity and inclusivity of creative representation, correlating with such
phenomenon, as “the polyphony of methods, genres and styles in the
creativity of one author as an echo of experience of ‘the fullness of
existence,’ not staying within the selected form once and for all.”
9
The
“universalism of bases and meanings” proclaims humanistic ideals,
accentuates timeless aspects of the subject matter and orients towards
“historical foresight,” going beyond the scope of the “visual field of
modernity.”
10
We see that these provisions are relevant for each type of art and can
equally be the basis for analysing the developmental paths of painters,
musicians, theatre professionals and so on. Ludmila Daryalova points out
the generalizing character of the creativity of authors to whom the term
“artistic universalism” is applied, noting the reliance on forms assimilated in
historical-cultural development:
“Here can be found the romantically enlarged vision, the mythopoetic
vision, modernistic devices of deformation, dictates of artistic rationalism,
realistic psychologisms, etc., accompanied by a pathway out to symbolic
discourse - all this is presented in synthesis, in new formation, as something
integral and poetic.”
11
Thus, artistic universalism of personality implies a certain diversity of
thought, an aspiration to express one’s self in different types of art and
even science, to open new horizons in learning the world.
It is generally accepted that artistic universalism of personality was
especially notable in the Renaissance. In the opinion of American academic
Eugene Marlow, Mark Chagall was the direct successor to this aeesthetic.
12
Being gifted in different types of art, and despite
experiencing the influence
of expressionism, symbolism, cubism, surrealism and neo-primitivism, he
managed to preserve his uniqueness of idiom. The wide range of themes,
images and genres covered by the painter from Vitebsk - from mythological
and iconographic scenes to present-day events of a historical scale, from the
thinnest love lyrics to comedic and circus performances - in all, the epic
proportions of his creativity, demonstrated through thousands of works,
make it possible to speak of the artistic universalism of Chagall’s
personality and creativity as a whole.
9
Studenko 2006, p. 287.
10
Ibid.
11
Daryalova 2003, p. 39.
12
http://www.eugenemarlow.com/2013/09/30/the-musical-icons-of-marc-chagall,
accessed 20 June 2014.
www.cclbsebes.ro/muzeul-municipal-ioan-raica.html / www.cimec.ro
L. G. Safiullina, G. I. Batyrshina
70
Chagall’s integral worldview demanded the participation of different
types of art, drawing upon the language of colours, lines, sounds, tones,
rhythms, acrobatic stunts and dance steps. Although his artistic-literary
connections, along with his use of images of circus acts and buffoonery
have been studied thoroughly,
13
the theme of music in his art has not been
explored
in detail, though it is worth mentioning articles by Miriam
Rayner,
14
Alexander Maykapar,
15
a note by Eugene Marlow
16
and some well-
observed comments in the works of Natalya Apchinskaya
17
and Aliya
Reich.
18
Yet any account of Chagall’s canvases, of their enclosed essences
and meanings, would be incomplete without the musical aspect. The theme
of music runs throughout the painter’s work, accompanying him through
his entire life, emerging in different genres of his creative output. Music
initially appeared as a central theme in his works, then faded into
insignificance, but never disappeared completely from his field of vision.
The purpose of this article is to study the musical iconography in the
works of Mark Chagall, offering a conceptual interpretation of the images
of musicians and musical instruments in his paintings, graphics, stained
glass works, panels and frescos, revealing the universalism within the
personality and creative output of artist, as well offering new perspectives
on interconnections between the art and music of the 20
th
century.
Chagall himself possessed musical skills: he liked to sing and play
violin. In his later years, he reflected upon the reasons behind his attraction
to musical performance: “Why did I sing? Why did I know that the voice is
required not only for bawling and for railing at sisters? One way or another,
I had a voice and I could develop it.”
19
Chagall recalls his first experiences
of performance, singing in synagogue, with humour,
recalling his childhood
dreams of becoming a musician:
“I was assigned as an assistant to the Cantor, and on holidays the whole
synagogue and I myself clearly heard my sonorous soprano. I saw the smiles
on faces of the diligently listening congregation and dreamt: “I will be a
singer, a Cantor. I will enter the conservatory…. In addition, one violinist
13
David Simanovich considers different aspects of the problem “Chagall and poetry in the
20
th
century” (Simanovich 2008); Elena Ge focuses attention on the topic of Chagall and
language, analysing, amongst other things, the correlation between Chagall and Apollinaire
(Ge 2013); Natalya Apchinskaya and Olga Klepatskaya reveal the role of circus imagery in
the painter’s creative output (Apchinskaya 2006; Klepatskaya 2008).
14
Rajner 2005; Rajner 2008.
15
Maykapar 1990.
16
http://www.eugenemarlow.com/2013/09/30/the-musical-icons-of-marc-chagall, accessed 20
June 2014.
17
Apchinskaya 1990; Apchinskaya 1995; Apchinskaya 2004.
18
Reich 2012.
19
Chagall 1994.
www.cclbsebes.ro/muzeul-municipal-ioan-raica.html / www.cimec.ro