The exhibition of naive art launched the celebrations dedicated to the 125th anniversary of Marc Chagall in Vitebsk

April 3, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The IV National Exhibition of Naive Art Insita-2012 today launched celebrations in honor of the 125th anniversary of Marc Chagall in Vitebsk, according to a BELTA correspondent. "The connection between Chagall's art and the poetics of primitive art is undeniable. Primitivism, to which the master's work can be safely attributed, as an artistic phenomenon, was born from primitive - folk art," explained the exhibition curator, Candidate of Art History Lyudmila Vakar. Insita-2012 this time brought together works by 79 artists, including both naive artists and representatives of primitivism - professional artists working in this avant-garde direction. In addition to Belarusian authors, guests from St. Petersburg and Lithuania are participating in the exhibition. Visitors can see works from the collections of the Museum of Naive Art in Moscow and the Museum of Naive Art in Latvia. For the 120th anniversary of Chagall's birth, the Moscow museum, together with Vitebsk primitive artists, also held a joint exhibition. This project turned out to be quite successful - the Moscow museum bought two works by Vitebsk naive artists, said its director Vladimir Grozin. The exhibition dedicated to the 125th anniversary of Chagall opened today at three exhibition venues in Vitebsk - at the Marc Chagall Art Center, the Vitebsk Regional Museum of Local Lore, and the Vitebsk Regional Methodological Center for Folk Art. It will run until May 5. Among the many events dedicated to the anniversary of the famous artist, a native of Vitebsk, the main ones will be the XXII Chagall Readings and Chagall's Birthday itself. The Chagall Readings will be held from June 9 to 10 and will be dedicated to the history of the Vitebsk Art School in 1918-1923, which was opened in the city thanks to the then Plenipotentiary Commissar for Arts of the Vitebsk Governorate, Marc Chagall. Art historians and Chagall scholars from Belarus, Russia, Latvia, France, and Germany have already sent in applications to participate in the readings. Chagall's birthday will be celebrated in Vitebsk on July 7 and 8. On the eve, July 6, an exhibition of one painting will open at the Vitebsk Art Museum. It will be a portrait of Chagall by Yehuda Pen, the first mentor of Marc Chagall, brought from the collection of the National Art Museum. The main event of the celebrations will be the festival on Pokrovskaya Street on July 7, "Visiting Marc and Bella." Guests can expect theatrical and circus performances, a solemn laying of flowers, an exhibition-sale of exclusive souvenirs that can only be bought "here and now," a wall painting, and, of course, a literary and musical program in the museum courtyard. On this day, "Belpochta" will hold a special cancellation of an envelope and stamp for the 125th anniversary of Marc Chagall. The next day, the central squares of the city will host the plein air event "Vitebsk - City of Artists." In order to show that the traditions of fine art are not only in Vitebsk's past but are also successfully developing now (annually, the faculties of two universities graduate young artists, designers, and fashion designers), masters of different ages are invited to the plein air: from students of children's art schools to established masters. Among other festive events are two plein airs: an international student plein air and a plein air by the Vitebsk branch of the Belarusian Union of Artists. The anniversary year will conclude with an exhibition at the Vitebsk Art Museum titled "Teacher and Student," which will feature works by Marc Chagall's teacher, Yehuda Pen, and the artist himself. However, which works by Chagall will be shown in Vitebsk is still unknown: negotiations are underway with the museums that own the works. The celebration of Chagall's 125th anniversary will be marked not only in Vitebsk. The Tretyakov Gallery will present an anniversary exhibition, and a scientific conference will be held at the Hermitage. -0-