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Wounded Soldier

1914
Marc Chagall (French (born Vitebsk, Russian Empire), 1887–1985)
Made in Vitebsk shortly after the outbreak of World War I, this grim, expressive painting comes from a series that marks Chagall’s most direct commentary on contemporary global events. In sickly green and brown hues, a pallid infantryman supports his injured arm in a sling, while behind him three disoriented compatriots stumble along, possibly as a result of exposure to chemical gas warfare. As Vitebsk was a growing city with a major railway station, Chagall would have witnessed firsthand the troop movements of the Imperial Russian Army heading to and from the nearby Eastern Front.

Object Details

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