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Marc Chagall (1887-1985) – Lumiere du cirque (The Light of the Circus)
Lithograph from 1969.
The edition of 41/50 on Arches paper.
Dimensions of work: 50.5 x 67 cm.
Hand signed.
Reference: Mourlot 566.
The work is in Excellent condition.
—
“On life’s stage the laughter and the tears remain;
And the sounds of the orchestra.”
— Marc Chagall, The Lithographs of Chagall 1969–1973, Éditions André Sauret, 1974
In Lumière du cirque, Marc Chagall transforms the spectacle of the circus into a metaphor for human existence — a theatre of light, emotion, and memory. The artist’s own words, printed at the opening of The Lithographs of Chagall 1969–1973, reveal the depth of this vision: life itself becomes a stage where joy and sorrow intertwine, accompanied by the eternal music of creation.
Created in 1969 and printed by Fernand Mourlot, Lumière du cirque belongs to a celebrated cycle of circus lithographs in which Chagall’s lifelong fascination with acrobats, clowns, and musicians reaches lyrical maturity. Beneath their luminous colours lies a profound empathy for the performers — figures who, suspended between gravity and flight, embody the fragile balance between laughter and melancholy. The glowing reds and yellows evoke the warmth of the spotlight, while the sweeping arcs of blue recall the infinite expanse of dream and memory.
For Chagall, the circus was not mere entertainment but a sacred mirror of existence — a space where art, movement, and faith converged. “For me,” he once said, “a circus is disturbing… it is profound.” In Lumière du cirque, that profundity becomes visible: the performers’ gestures become prayers, and the luminous air becomes the orchestra of life itself — the same orchestra he invoked in his poetic reflection.
In this union of image and thought, Chagall’s circus is illuminated not only by the painter’s colours but by the inner light of compassion — the lumière of the soul that survives every performance.
