Chagall, Warhol Exhibits Underway at Sherwin Miller
The Sherwin Miller Museum is hosting Marc Chagall: Drawings for the Bible. The drawings were commissioned in 1930 by Ambroise Vollard, a Parisian art dealer and publisher of deluxe art books.
Chagall traveled to Palestine to experience for himself the people, the landscape and the sacred historic places. By 1939, at the outbreak of World War II, he had finished 66 images. Although Chagall was familiar with the works of the old masters, especially Rembrandt’s portrayals of Biblical themes, his depictions are independent of all previous iconography and the traditional conventions. Rather, Chagall based his etchings on his personal memories and his impressions from his trip to what was then Palestine. A broad selection of lithographs from this series are included.
Also at the museum until Dec. 19, 2011, is Andy Warhol’s Ten Portraits of Jews of the Twentieth Century, which depicts renowned luminaries of Jewish culture: Sarah Bernhardt, Louis Brandeis, Martin Buber, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, George Gershwin, Franz Kafka, the Marx Brothers, Golda Meir and Gertrude Stein. Warhol referred to this pantheon of great thinkers, politicians, performers and writers as his “Jewish geniuses.”
Warhol’s iconic portraits attest to the lasting achievements and fame of these singular figures. Originally published as a portfolio of silkscreen prints on paper, Warhol was so pleased with the commercial success of his Ten Portraits that he decided to create additional versions of the series as silkscreen paintings on canvas.
Andy Warhol was one of the most important artists in the Pop art movement in America and became as famous as many of the celebrities he portrayed in his popular silkscreen prints.
Updated 11-21-2011
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