《白色十字架》

爱艺

White Crucifixion （oil on canvas， 154.6 cm×140 cm， 1938） represents a critical turning point for the artist Marc Chagall： It was the first of an important series of compositions that feature the image of Christ as a Jewish martyr and dramatically call attention to the persecution and suffering of European Jews in the 1930s.

The painting shows the suffering of Jews and Jesus. Violent conflicts are depicted such as the setting on fire of synagogues1. In the center of the picture Jesus is displayed， crucified and symbolized as being Jewish adorned in a prayer shawl.

White Crucifixion revealed nostalgia for 14th-century Italian art， and displayed an authentic coloristic value. This painting has thematic ties to Renaissance religious painting， especially the works by Michelangelo， but it also carries references to The Raising of the Cross by Rembrandt.

In White Crucifixion， his first and largest work on the subject， Chagall stressed the Jewish identity of Jesus in several ways： he replaced his traditional loincloth with a prayer shawl， his crown of thorns with a headcloth， and the mourning angels that customarily surround him with three biblical patriarchs and a matriarch， clad in traditional Jewish garments.

At either side of the cross， Chagall illustrated the devastation of pogroms2： On the left， a village is pillaged and burned， forcing refugees to flee by boat and the three bearded figures below them—one of whom clutches the Torah3—to escape on foot. On the right， a synagogue and its Torah ark go up in flames， while below a mother comforts her child. By linking the martyred Jesus with the persecuted Jews and the Crucifixion with contemporary events， Chagalls painting passionately identifies the Nazis with Christs tormentors and warns of the moral implications of their actions.

Together with Pablo Picassos Guernica， the White Crucifixion is one of the most eloquent condemnations of war and hatred of the 20th century.

The original painting is currently being exhibited in the Art Institute of Chicago.

對马克·夏加尔来说，《白色十字架》（布面油画，154.6厘米×140厘米，1938年）是其绘画生涯的重要转折点：夏加尔创作过一组重要的系列画，画中将基督呈现为犹太殉道者，极大唤起了人们对1930年代欧洲犹太人遭受迫害和苦难的关注，此画是该系列的第一幅作品。

此画展示了犹太人和耶稣经历的苦难。画中描绘了暴力冲突的场景，比如犹太会堂被纵火。画面中央，耶稣围着一块祈祷披巾，象征犹太人被钉在十字架上。

《白色十字架》是对14世纪意大利绘画艺术的缅怀，同时也展示出色彩真正的价值。此画在主题上与文艺复兴时期的宗教画尤其是米开朗基罗的作品密切相关，但还参考了伦勃朗的《高举十字架》。

《白色十字架》是夏加尔就这一题材创作的第一幅也是最大的一幅画。在画中，他通过几个细节强调了耶稣的犹太身份：用祈祷披巾取代了传统的缠腰布，用包头巾取代了荆棘冠，用身着犹太传统服装的三位圣经男族长和一位女族长取代了惯常围绕耶稣身边的若干哀悼天使。

在十字架的两侧，夏加尔描绘了大屠杀造成的破坏：左侧，一个村庄遭到洗劫和焚烧，难民被迫乘船出逃，他们下方有三个留着胡须的人正徒步逃离，其中一个紧紧抱着《律法书》;右侧，一座犹太会堂及其收藏律法书的约柜陷入火海，下方有一位母亲正在安慰她的孩子。夏加尔在画中将殉道的耶稣与遭迫害的犹太人相关联，将耶稣受难与当代世事相关联，由此把纳粹等同于折磨基督之人，并提醒人们注意这些人种种行为的道德意蕴——整幅画情感浓烈。

与巴勃罗·毕加索的《格尔尼卡》一样，夏加尔的这幅 《白色十字架》也是对20世纪战争和仇恨最有力的一份谴责。

原画现展于美国芝加哥艺术学院。