By Marc Chagall
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Marc Chagall (1887–1985)
Title: The Purple Rooster (Le Coq Violet)
Year: June 1962
Medium: Lithograph on velin paper
Paper Size: 15 x 22 inches (38.1 x 55.88 cm), with centerfold as issued
Condition: Well preserved, consistent with age and medium
Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued
Publisher: Maeght Editeur, Paris
Printer: Mourlot Freres, Paris
Catalogue raisonne reference: Cramer, Patrick, and Meret Meyer. Marc Chagall: Catalogue Raisonne des Livres Illustres. Patrick Cramer Editeur, 1995, illustration 50; Mourlot, Fernand, and Marc Chagall. Chagall Lithographe III: 1962–1968. Andre Sauret, 1969, illustration 356
Notes: This exquisite lithograph by Marc Chagall (1887–1985), titled Le Coq Violet (The Purple Rooster), from the folio Derriere le miroir, No. 132, originates from the 1962 edition published by Maeght Editeur, Paris, and printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris, 1962. Le Coq Violet captures Chagall’s poetic fusion of color, folklore, and imagination, uniting the pastoral and the mystical in a vision that celebrates renewal, fertility, and creative vitality. The composition radiates with Chagall’s signature chromatic brilliance and dreamlike balance between the real and the fantastical. Derriere le Miroir (translated as "Behind the Mirror") was an iconic French art periodical published from 1946 to 1982 by Maeght Editeur, one of the most influential art publishers of the twentieth century. Founded by Aime Maeght in Paris, the publication was conceived as a visual and literary collaboration between leading modern artists, poets, and critics. Each issue functioned simultaneously as an exhibition catalogue and as an autonomous work of art, featuring original lithographs printed directly from the artists stones or plates alongside essays, poems, and critical texts. Over more than three decades, Derriere le Miroir produced over 250 issues and presented an extraordinary range of artists including Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, Georges Braque, Alexander Calder, Fernand Leger, Pierre Bonnard, Alberto Giacometti, Eduardo Chillida, Ellsworth Kelly, Francis Bacon, Antoni Tapies, Pierre Alechinsky, Pol Bury, Bram van Velde, and many others. Printed by master ateliers such as Mourlot and Arte, the series established new standards of excellence in modern lithography and graphic design. Closely linked to exhibitions at Galerie Maeght, each issue served as a lasting document of postwar modernism, uniting image, text, and philosophy into a uniquely influential publication that remains among the most important and collectible achievements in twentieth century art publishing.
MARC CHAGALL (1887–1985) was a Belarus-born French painter, printmaker, and designer whose visionary imagination, radiant color, and deeply poetic symbolism made him one of the most beloved and influential artists of the 20th century. Rooted in the imagery of his Jewish heritage and the memories of his childhood in Vitebsk, Chagall’s art wove together themes of faith, love, folklore, and fantasy with a dreamlike modern sensibility. His unique style—merging elements of Cubism, Fauvism, Expressionism, and Surrealism—defied categorization, transforming ordinary scenes into lyrical meditations on memory and emotion. Influenced by Russian icon painting, medieval religious art, and the modern innovations of artists such as Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and Georges Braque, Chagall developed a profoundly personal visual language filled with floating figures, vibrant animals, musicians, and lovers that symbolized the transcendent power of imagination and love. During his early years in Paris, he became an integral part of the Ecole de Paris circle, forming friendships with Amedeo Modigliani, Fernand Leger, and Sonia Delaunay, and his creative spirit resonated with that of his peers and successors—Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray—artists who, like Chagall, sought to push the boundaries of perception, emotion, and form. Over a prolific career that spanned painting, printmaking, stained glass, ceramics, and stage design, Chagall brought an unparalleled poetic sensibility to modern art, infusing even the most abstract subjects with human warmth and spiritual depth. His works are held in the most prestigious museums around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Centre Pompidou, the Tate, and the Guggenheim, where they continue to inspire generations of artists and collectors. The highest price ever paid for a Marc Chagall artwork is approximately 28.5 million USD, achieved in 2017 at Sotheby’s New York for Les Amoureux (1928).
Marc Chagall Le Coq...
Category
1960s Expressionist Marc Chagall Art