Marc Chagall Depicted 10 Operas on the Ceiling of Paris Opera in 1964

Summary: Belarusian-French Jewish artist Marc Chagall painted 10 operas on the ceiling of Paris Opera's opera house, Palais Garnier, in 1964.

Marc Chagall's musical illustrations on the dome of the ceiling of Paris Opera's older home theatre, now primarily emphasizing ballet, in Palais Garnier: David Stanley from Nanaimo, Canada, CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons

Belarusian-French Jewish artist Marc Chagall depicted 10 operas on the ceiling of the auditorium of Paris Opera's older, now seldom used home theater in the Palais Garnier in 1964.

Charles de Gaulle (Nov. 22, 1890-Nov. 9, 1970), two-term 18th President of France (Président de la République française; Jan. 8, 1959-April 28, 1969), appointed André Malraux as France’s first Minister of Culture (Ministre des Affaires culturelles; July 22, 1959-June 20, 1969). One of Malraux's cultural projects concerned the Paris Opera's ceiling.

The Paris Opera, also known as Opéra Garnier for its home theater, then was housed in the Palais Garnier (Garnier Palace). The opera's eclectically styled theater was designed by French architect Jean-Louis Charles Garnier (Nov. 6, 1825-Aug. 3, 1898) and built at the behest of Napoléon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; Aprl 20, 1808-Jan. 9. 1873), who reigned as the last Emperor of the French (French: Empereur des Français) from Dec. 2, 1852 until his deposal in absentia Sep. 4, 1870. Groundbreaking occurred in August 1861, and Palais Garnier was inaugurated Tuesday, Jan. 5, 1875.

On Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1960, President de Gaulle and Malraux entertained a Peruvian delegation by attending the Paris Opera's premiere of Daphnis et Chloe by French composer, conductor and pianist Joseph Maurice Ravel (March 7, 1875-Dec. 28, 1937), according to Opera Online's Sep. 23, 2014, post, "When Chagall and Malraux shook up the Palais Garnier opera house." Marc Chagall (born Moishe Shagal; July 6 [O.S. June 24], 1887-March 28, 1985) had designed the ballet's costumes and sets. During his attendance at the new production, Malraux dissatisfyingly noticed "Les Muses et les Heures du jour et de la nuit" ("The Muses and the Hours of the Day and Night"), the opera house ceiling's original artwork, which was painted in 1872 by French artist Jules-Eugène Lenepveu (Dec. 12, 1819-Oct. 16, 1898), according to Anne Newman in "Marc Chagall and the Floating Canvas in the Palais Garnier, Paris," posted Jan. 10, 2020, to her art blog, AnArt4Life.

model of the original artwork, "Les Muses et les Heures du jour et de la nuit" ("The Muses and the Hours of the Day and Night"), painted on the Paris Opera's ceiling in 1872 by French artist Jules-Eugène Lenepveu (Dec. 12, 1819-Oct. 16, 1898); Marc Chagell's canvas obscures, but does not obliterate, Lenepveu's painting: Inocybe / Piero d'Houin, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons

Malraux's dissatisfaction with Lenepveu's decoration ultimately led to his commissioning Chagall to embellish the opera house's ceiling with a new decor. Chagall refused payment for this project and only accepted reimbursment of the cost of materials, according to Google Arts & Culture's description, "Marc Chagall's Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 1st series of panels." Chagall created his new decor between January and August 1964.

Chagall's creation of 12 panels with a round central panel required nearly 2,400 square feet of canvas and 440 pounds of paint, according to Google Arts & Culture's description and also cultural marketer and sponsor Francisco Filpe Cruz's article, "Marc Chagall and the Opera, a Love that Never Died: A Look at Paris Opéra Garnier Ceiling," published May 22, 2018, via LinkedIn Pulse. Chagall's decor was hoisted to the opera house's 70-foot ceiling as five, polyester panel-glued sections that were stretched over Lenepveu's artwork.

Chagall's signature, "Chagall Marc 1964," is found on the decor's central and main panels, according to Google Arts & Culture's description. The Paris Opera's new ceiling was inaugurated Wednesday, Sep. 23, 1964.

Chagall's round central panel depicts four operas, according to Google Arts & Culture's description. Dominantly red-colored Carmen by French Romantic Era composer Georges Bizet (Oct. 25, 1838-June 3, 1875) is placed between dominantly green-colored Orfeo ed Euridice by German classical composer Christoph von Gluck (July 2, 1714-Nov. 15, 1787) and a dominantly yellow-colored, unspecified opera, possibly La Traviata, by 19th-century Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901). Dominantly colored blue and green, Fidelio by German composer and pianist Ludwig van Beethoven (bapt. Dec. 17, 1770-March 26, 1827) occurs between Gluck and Verdi.

Chagall's main panel presents six operas. An unspecified, dominantly red- and white-colored vignette of an unspecified opera by French composer and music theorist Jean-Philippe Rameau (Sep. 25, 1683-Sep. 12, 1764) occurs between dominantly blue-colored Pelléas et Mélisande by French Impressionist composer Achille-Claude Debussy (Aug. 22, 1862-March 25, 1918) and dominantly green-colored Roméo et Juliette by French Romantic composer Hector Berlioz (Dec. 11, 1803-March 8, 1869).

Nineteenth-century German composer and librettist Wilhelm Richard Wagner's dominantly green-colored Tristan und Isolde is situated between Berlioz's dominantly green-colored Romeo et Juliette and Classical Era composer Wolfgang Mozart's dominantly light blue-colored Die Zauberflote.

Mozart's Die Zauberflote neighbors Russian composer Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky's dominantly blue-colored Boris Godunov.

In addition to operas and their composers, Chagall included four ballets in his main medallion at the Paris Opera. Ballerinas in Giselle by French composer Adolphe Adam (July 24, 1803-May 3, 1856) dance prettily between Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov and Swan Lake by Russian late Romantic era composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (May 7, 1840-Nov. 6, 1893). Dominantly red-, green- and blue-colored "The Firebird" by Russian-born composer, conductor and pianist Igor Stravinsky (June 17, 1882-April 6, 1971) perches between Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and dominantly red-colored Daphnis et Chloé by French composer, conductor and pianist Joseph Maurice Ravel (March 7, 1875-Dec. 28, 1937).

Chagall's palette of the three primary colors of red, yellow and blue colorfully dramatizes the ceiling of the Paris Opera's auditorium. The secondary color of green distinguishes two sets of neighboring vignettes, with Beethoven's Fidelio greenifying the central medallion with Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice and with the verdant expanse of the star-crossed operas of Berlioz's Roméo et Juliette and Wagner's Tristan und Isolde.

details of dominantly red-colored vignettes of Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé and Stravinsky's The Firebird, with dominantly blue-colored Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande (left): MollySVH, CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Marc Chagall's musical illustrations on the dome of the ceiling of Paris Opera's older home theatre, now primarily emphasizing ballet, in Palais Garnier: David Stanley from Nanaimo, Canada, CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marc_Chagall_Painting_(10248395836).jpg; David Stanley (D-Stanley), CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidstanleytravel/10248395836/

model of the original artwork, "Les Muses et les Heures du jour et de la nuit" ("The Muses and the Hours of the Day and Night"), painted on the Paris Opera's ceiling in 1872 by French artist Jules-Eugène Lenepveu (Dec. 12, 1819-Oct. 16, 1898); Marc Chagell's canvas obscures, but does not obliterate, Lenepveu's painting: Inocybe / Piero d'Houin, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maquette_du_plafond_de_Lenepveu.jpg

details of dominantly red-colored vignettes of Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé and Stravinsky's The Firebird, with dominantly blue-colored Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande (left): MollySVH, CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marc_Chagall_plafond_-_(détail)_Tour_Eiffel.jpg

For further information:

Allan, Brad. "The Chagall ceiling of the Palais Garnier, Paris." The Good Life France > Guest Blogs.
Available @ https://thegoodlifefrance.com/the-chagall-ceiling-of-the-palais-garnier-paris/

Cruz, Francisco Felipe. "Marc Chagall and the Opera, a Love That Never Died: A Look at Paris Opéra Garnier Ceiling." LinkedIn > Pulse. May 22, 2018.
Available @ https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/marc-chagall-opera-love-never-died-look-paris-op%C3%A9ra-garnier-cruz-1

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Vol. I. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1878. [Note: Includes Vol. II, 1881].
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/lenouveloprade01garn/

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Vol. I. Sculpture Ornementale. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1880.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125010856207/

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Vol. I. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1880.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125010856207/

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Vol. II. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1881.
Available via BnF (Bibliothèque nationale de France) Gallica @ https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5758394n.image
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125010856215/
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/lenouveloprade01garn/

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Bronzes. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1875. [Note: Incldues Sculpture Ornementale, 1875.].
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125014919928/page/n108/mode/1up
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125014919928/page/n11/mode/2up

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Peintures Décoratives. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1876.

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Statues Décoratives. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1875. [Note: Incldues Bronzes, 1875.].
Available via BnF (Bibliothèque nationale de France) Gallica @ https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b105391064/f2.item

Garnier, Charles. Le Nouvel Opéra de Paris. Sculpture Ornementale. Paris: Ducher et Cie., 1875. [Note: Incldues Bronzes, 1875.].
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125014919928/page/n11/mode/2up

Google Arts & Culture. "Marc Chagall’s Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 1st series of panels. Marc Chagall 1963-01-01/1964-09-23." Google Arts & Culture > Asset.
Available @ https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/marc-chagall%E2%80%99s-ceiling-for-the-paris-op%C3%A9ra-marc-chagall/RwHNmMsONyvObQ?hl=en

Google Arts & Culture. "Marc Chagall’s Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 2nd series of panels. Marc Chagall 1963-01-01/1964-09-23." Google Arts & Culture > Asset.
Available @ https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/2nd-series-of-panels/RwHNmMsONyvObQ?childAssetId=4AHxquylKNiNeQ&hl=en

Google Arts & Culture. "Marc Chagall’s Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 3rd series of panels. Marc Chagall 1963-01-01/1964-09-23." Google Arts & Culture > Asset.
Available @ https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/3rd-series-of-panels/RwHNmMsONyvObQ?childAssetId=yAFEZ9CIkxbUjQ&hl=en

Google Arts & Culture. "Marc Chagall’s Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 4th series of panels. Marc Chagall 1963-01-01/1964-09-23." Google Arts & Culture > Asset.
Available @ https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/4th-series-of-panels/RwHNmMsONyvObQ?childAssetId=lQEpLvjLwTiaLA&hl=en

Google Arts & Culture. "Marc Chagall’s Ceiling for the Paris Opéra -- 5th series of panels. Marc Chagall 1963-01-01/1964-09-23." Google Arts & Culture > Asset.
Available @ https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/5th-series-of-panels/RwHNmMsONyvObQ?childAssetId=pgFKlSNwpt5KvA&hl=en

Keller, Hadley. "Chagall’s Opéra Garnier Ceiling Celebrates 50 Years." Architectural Digest. Aug. 31, 2014.
Available @ https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/marc-chagall-opera-ceiling

Marriner, Derdriu. "Born July 7, 1887, Marc Chagall Designed Die Zauberflöte at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, July 1, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/07/born-july-7-1887-marc-chagall-designed.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Born Sept. 10, 1944, Thomas Allen Made His Met Opera Debut as Papageno." Earth and Space News. Monday, Sep. 9, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/09/born-sept-10-1944-thomas-allen-made-his.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Met Opera Unveiled Two Marc Chagall Music Murals Sept. 8, 1966." Earth and Space News. Monday, Sep. 2, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/09/met-opera-unveiled-two-marc-chagall.html

Marsh, Janine. "Google Cultural Institute Paris / Mind Blowing Technology." The Good Life France > Art and Artists.
Available @ https://thegoodlifefrance.com/google-cultural-institute-paris-mind-blowing-technology/

Masterworks Fine Art Gallery. "Marc Chagall and the Opera, a Love that Never Died: A Look into what Inspired Marc Chagall's Lithographs." Masterworks Fine Art Gallery > Art News.
Available @ https://news.masterworksfineart.com/2017/07/11/marc-chagall-and-the-opera-a-love-that-never-died-a-look-into-what-inspired-marc-chagalls-lithographs

Opera Online. "When Chagall and Malraux shook up the Palais Garnier opera house." Opera Online > News. Sep. 23, 2014.
Available @ https://www.opera-online.com/en/articles/when-chagall-and-malraux-shook-up-the-palais-garnier-opera-house?ref=anart4life.com

PATRONS. "Daphnis and Chloe." PATRONS > "CHAGALL: Fantasies for the Stage July 31, 2017-January 7, 2018 LACMA. Los Angeles County Museum of Art." PATRONS.
Available @ https://patrons.org.es/chagall-fantasies-for-the-stage/