Lithograph from 1954.
A rare artist’s proof (épreuve d’artiste) on Arches paper, produced outside the limited numbered edition of only 75 impressions..
Dimensions of work: 56.7 x 76.7 cm.
Hand signed.
Publisher: Maeght Éditeur, Paris.
Reference: Mourlot 111.
The work is in Excellent condition.
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In La Bastille, Marc Chagall transforms one of Paris’s most historically charged landmarks into a lyrical vision of love, memory and freedom. Rather than depicting the city with architectural precision, Chagall presents Paris as an emotional landscape—a place where monuments, lovers, animals and flowers coexist in a dreamlike world unconstrained by ordinary perspective.
The composition originates from Chagall’s celebrated Paris Series, conceived as a tribute to the city that had occupied a central place in his life and imagination since his arrival there in 1911. At its heart rises the July Column of the Place de la Bastille, crowned by the Génie de la Liberté. The monument’s political associations with revolution and liberty are absorbed into Chagall’s deeply personal visual language. History becomes poetry, while the physical city is transformed into a symbolic space shaped by affection and remembrance.
The column appears enveloped within the body of a great red animal—a fantastic, protective presence characteristic of Chagall’s art. Around it unfold several of his most enduring motifs: an embracing couple, a mysterious nocturnal female figure, the moon and a hand presenting a bouquet of flowers. These elements do not form a conventional narrative. Instead, they operate like fragments of a dream, connected through feeling rather than logic. The lovers embody intimacy and devotion, while the bouquet introduces a note of celebration and abundance. The monumental animal appears to shelter the scene, embracing both the city and its inhabitants.
Colour plays an essential expressive role. Intense passages of red are balanced by deep blues, violets and touches of luminous colour, creating an atmosphere that is simultaneously passionate and contemplative. Chagall’s free, fluid line gives the composition a sense of movement, as though its figures were suspended between the material world and the realm of memory. Paris is not merely represented—it is remembered, loved and reinvented.
Created in 1954, the lithograph demonstrates Chagall’s remarkable command of the medium. Lithography allowed him to preserve the spontaneity of drawing while building areas of rich and expressive colour. Published by Maeght Éditeur in Paris, one of the most influential publishers of twentieth-century modern art, the work is recorded as number 111 in Fernand Mourlot’s authoritative catalogue of Chagall’s lithographs. Its technical details are independently consistent with published records for the edition.
This impression is an épreuve d’artiste—an artist’s proof produced aside from the regular edition of 75 impressions. Printed on Arches paper and hand-signed by Chagall, it measures 56.7 × 76.7 cm and is preserved in very good condition. Combining an important Parisian subject with Chagall’s unmistakable imagery, La Bastille is an evocative example of the artist’s ability to transform a familiar place into a timeless meditation on love, freedom and the enduring poetry of the city.
