"If I were not a Jew . . . I wouldn't have been an artist, or I would be a different artist altogether." -Marc Chagall, Leaves from My Notebook. Marc Chagall is one of the most popular artists of the 20th century, famous for his poetic, surreal images that represent a topsy-turvy world, combining fantasy and spirituality with a modernist style. This volume serves as a guide to the iconography of Chagall's best-loved work—in which he frequently included Jewish symbolism and folklore, sometimes overtly, sometimes in hidden, quite meaningful ways—offering insight into Chagall's Jewish roots and succinct interpretations of his major paintings, from his early masterpieces made in Russia and in Paris to his Yiddish art theater paintings. Harshav illuminates Chagall's most famous paintings of the Jewish shtetl, or provincial Russian town, and highlights the recognizable trademarks of his art, such as the "fiddler on the roof." It also interprets in detail Chagall's theater murals and his beautiful stained-glass windows at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. Although Chagall is not known only as a Jewish artist, his background was the prism through which he saw the world and served as the language of his universally loved art.
about the author
Benjamin Harshav is professor of Comparative Literature, Hebrew language and Literature, and Slavic languages at Yale University. His many publications include Marc Chagall and His Times: A Documentary Narrative, Marc Chagall and the Jewish Theater, and Marc Chagall on Art and Culture.
This is one of the few galleries in Jerusalem with its finger on the pulse of Palestinian contemporary art. Founded in 1992 by artist Jack Persekian, the shop-converted space holds mainly solo shows by Palestinian and international artists. Artists who have been lucky enough to exhibit in this intimate little space have included Mona Hatoum who made an installation on the gallery floor with soap and glass beads, as well as others such as Jean-Marc Bustamante. Group shows in the past have involved Palestinian and Israeli artists, with exhibits occasionally touching on the political issues surrounding the city and both nations. Set in a quiet and interesting location in the Christian Quarter of the Old City, the frequent exhibitions held here are not to be missed by culture lovers.
Gallery Anadiel 
