The National Museum of Warsaw (MNW) is celebrating its 160th anniversary with two new exhibitions – a premiere presentation of Marc Chagall’s works, purchased for the museum’s collection in 2021, and an exhibition of items from different times, cultures and parts of the world, accompanying people in everyday life.
The “Chagall” exhibition includes 16 works by Marc Chagall from the collection of the National Museum in Warsaw. Last autumn, the Museum bought 14 of the artist’s works at an auction in Switzerland. The exhibition is the first and currently the only opportunity for the public to see these works. The new acquisitions are accompanied by two Chagall prints from the earlier Museum collections, which cannot be displayed permanently, due to the strict conservation requirements resulting from the sensitivity of the substrate and the impermanence of techniques.
The characteristic style of Chagall and the themes of his works developed in the 1920s. The artist often referred to Judaism and Jewish culture, he painted couples in love, animals and flowers. Later in his work, Chagall expanded the repertoire of his favorite themes by topics related to Christianity.
Few museums in Poland can boast of Chagall’s works. The National Museum in Krakow keeps five of the artist’s prints, and the National Museum in Lublin – two items. The collection of the National Museum in Warsaw is currently presenting the largest collection of Chagall’s works in Poland.
The second jubilee exhibition “State of Things” tells the guests about the interpenetration of the world of people and objects. According to the curators, it is not only a panorama of forgotten things and human habits but also a wide presentation of monuments from different eras, cultures and parts of the world, collected by the Museum over the 160 years of its existence. Objects have been arranged in an order that corresponds to the rhythm of a person’s day and night – from the morning procedures through the home routine to entertainment, rest and sleep.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński