Oh God

Currently not on view

Oh God

1919

Marc Chagall (French (born Vitebsk, Russian Empire), 1887–1985)

In September 1918, the Soviet Education Ministry appointed Marc Chagall as Commissar of Fine Art for Vitebsk, his home district in Belarus. Chagall founded a People’s Art College and museum to foster rebellious modern art in the spirit of the Russian Revolution’s political transformations. But he clashed with his colleagues at the school over the definition of revolutionary art, and in June 1920 he set out for Moscow and a fresh start. The motif of an inverted, airborne head went back almost a decade in Chagall’s work. He used it as an abstract pictorial form, and also as a cipher for a giddy, illogical psychological state. In Oh God, the rotated head may signify Chagall’s pain and disappointment at what was transpiring in Vitebsk. In the background, a column of white crosses rises over an onion dome and the titular phrase is written in Cyrillic script in the sky.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Title:

Oh God

Date:

1919

Artist:

Marc Chagall (French (born Vitebsk, Russian Empire), 1887–1985)

Medium:

Oil and distemper on paper, mounted on cardboard

Dimensions:

22 3/4 x 18 5/16 inches (57.8 x 46.5 cm)

Classification:

Paintings

Credit Line:

The Louis E. Stern Collection, 1963

Accession Number:

1963-181-12

Geography:

Made in Vitebsk, Russian Empire, Asia

Provenance

We are always open to learning more about our collections and updating the website. Does this record contain inaccurate information or language that you feel we should improve or change? Contact us here.

Please note that this particular artwork might not be on view when you visit. Don’t worry—we have plenty of exhibitions for you to explore.

Currently not on view