Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
ADJUNCT MODULE D: WORLD ART
Preferred Title:
Cock
Image View:
Detail, harlequin embracing the rooster, couple in rowboat in distance
Creator:
Marc Chagall (Belorussian painter, 1887-1985)
Location:
repository: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza (Madrid, Madrid, Spain) Inv. no. 499 (1970.23)
Location Note:
Paseo del Prado, 8
GPS:
40.416111-3.695
Date:
1928 (creation)
Cultural Context:
French
Style Period:
Twentieth century
Work Type 1:
painting (visual work)
Classification:
Paintings
Material:
oil paint on canvas
Technique:
oil painting (technique)
Measurements:
81 cm (height) x 65.5 cm (width)
Subjects:
animal; human figure; literary or legendary; fantasy; fables; rooster
Description:
The Cock is related to Chagall's 1923 illustrations for La Fontaine’s Fables, which depicted a cockerel in two plates. Chagall depicts a loving embrace between the animal and a female figure that is generally identified as a harlequin. The courting theme extends to two other pairs of lovers who embrace in the background. The cockerel held a symbolic meaning for Chagall, for as Franz Meyer pointed out, from early on it “has played a part in religious rites as the embodiment of the forces of sun and fire” and was furthermore a common motif in Russian lubki. Lastly, the resplendent color, which foreshadows the chemistry of the color of his final compositions, is, as Susan Compton points out, undoubtedly related to Chagall’s friendship with the Delaunays. (Source: Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum [website]; https://www.museothy ssen.org/en/)
Collection:
Archivision Adjunct Module D: World Art
Identifier:
7A1-CHAGALL-TBM-TC28 -A02
Rights:
© Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc.

Cock