The Blue Rooster

In 1955, Lionello Venturi wrote to Chagall proposing a collaboration with mosaicists in Ravenna on two mosaics based on one of his works. The artist was quick to reply, expressing his interest in the medium and his fascination with “the marvelous mosaics of Ravenna”, which he had admired on a trip back from Greece. "I can't even imagine having something of mine turned into a mosaic,” he remarked¹. It was with these words that the story of Chagall's mosaic The Blue Rooster began.

This was a fine collaboration opportunity for Ravenna's Gruppo Mosaicisti, founded in 1948. Venturi suggested that Professor Giuseppe Bovini, in collaboration with the group’s director Giuseppe Salietti, act as a go-between with Chagall, answering the latter’s thoughtfully posed technical questions and his request for tesserae samples. From their correspondence spanning over a year, it is clear that the Ravenna group’s proposal was to create one mosaic as a gift to the artist as a token of gratitude and another to be exhibited in the “Gallery of modern mosaics” that they wished to open in the Italian city². The project, which was more innovative at the time than it seemed, attests to the particular attention paid to what today might be called “mosaic marketing”. The Ravenna mosaics would become an international showcase for the skills of local craftsmen capable of rivaling an acknowledged master of contemporary art. For Chagall at this time, mosaics were an experiment and a new medium to be discovered. For Ravenna, they held out the prospect of a long-awaited renaissance following the restauration of the old mosaics after the Second World War: "In the name of our committee,” Bovini wrote, “we wish to express our gratitude for your invaluable interest, thanks to which we hope that the art of the mosaic will soon bloom once again.³”.

In November 1957, through the intermediary of his friend and gallerist Aimé Maeght, Chagall sent a large gouache on paper to Ravenna that, according to the directions he had received, measured 1 x ×1.50 m. He also asked for the gouache to be returned to him as soon as possible, along with the completed mosaic, as he intended to include them together in an exhibition⁴. The gouache reached Ravenna on January 9, 1958, as attested by the shipping documents and a thank you letter from Salietti, who nevertheless expressed concern about the project’s feasibility due to “technical and pictorial issues”⁵. Romolo Papa’s journal reveals that Chagall’s mosaic project caused quite a stir in the ranks of the Gruppo Mosaicisti. "We’re planning a show of modern mosaics in our studio based on cartoons by Europe’s leading painters ... Chagall has sent us a splendid picture of a huge rooster,” he wrote. “All of us are excited. But executing it is another matter. His painting, however large, is certainly not the most suitable to be translated into mosaic. Nobody feels comfortable tackling it. The Board of Directors met and decided to entrust me with the task. I was very grateful to them for their choice. So I did it. I actually felt exhausted by the end. But I was thrilled when Chagall wrote us a letter full of praise and promising that he would give us more as soon as he could.⁶”.

Contrary to what was published in the catalogue of the Ravenna Museum's contemporary mosaic collection⁷, the first mosaic was executed by Papa. The chronology of the correspondence confirms that there was an agreement to send Chagall the first mosaic, while the Gruppo Mosaicisti would keep the second. Antonio Rocchi signed the accord, which is on display in the modern and contemporary mosaic collection at the Museo d’Arte della città di Ravenna⁸. The mosaic, which Papa fervently completed in less than three months, was sent to Paris on May 13, 1958. On May 22, Renato Signorini, head of the Scuola di Mosaico in Ravenna, reported that the second mosaic was already in progress. When Chagall asked for the project to be sent to him as soon as possible so that he could compare it with the finished mosaic, Signorini replied that it was impossible to speed up the work, as the mosaicist responsible for the transposition had to travel abroad due to previous commitments. It would be wrong to interrupt the project “only to have another mosaicist take it over, which would seriously harm the work due to the differences in style and interpretation that would inevitably result,” he wrote⁹. The cartoon, then, was not returned to Chagall until July 7, 1958¹⁰, after the second version was made. Thus, Rocchi’s work is the one that was on display at the 1959 Mostra dei mosaici moderni (Exhibition of Modern Mosaics)¹¹.

Chagall expressed his satisfaction with the first mosaic, hinting at future collaborations. Later, his correspondence mentioned another work, preceding The Blue Rooster but in red this time, that he believed could also be the basis for a mosaic¹². Chagall and Salietti wrote to each other about the cost of the project, but it never came to fruition. However, the artist continued his collaboration with the Gruppo Mosaicisti, working with Lino Melano, another one of its members. Melano, who was teaching Ravenna mosaic techniques at the École d’art italien in Paris, which also offered Faenza ceramic courses, became Chagall’s close collaborator.

For the first time, both versions of The Blue Rooster were exhibited alongside Chagall’s gouache. At first glance, Rocchi’s mosaic looks very similar to the one by Papa. Closer inspection reveals a more personal, more sensitive execution closer to painting. The variously sized glass paste tesserae¹³ follow the movement of the brush, almost suggesting the blurry effect of Chagall’s gouache. Bovini described the feeling of finding himself before ”a painting transposed with patience – and great sensitivity – into mosaic tesserae.¹⁴” Papa’s mosaic looks sharper than the gouache, with square tesserae, all the same size, defining its contours, a stylistic choice found in his other Ravenna museum mosaics. Furthermore, the chromatic contrasts are stronger than in Rocchi’s spirited style, which features a certain freedom of expression. Chagall’s Blue Rooster, made in two copies by two different mosaicists, reflects the dynamism of the Gruppo Mosaicisti, young artists, almost all involved in restoring old mosaics and making copies, who lived somewhat precariously in the period of postwar reconstruction.

By calling on Chagall, the Gruppo Mosaicisti sought to breathe new life into the age-old practice of mosaic by tackling the complex challenge of transposing a contemporary artwork into a new form. The commission also gave Chagall a chance to explore the aesthetic qualities and technical subtleties of an art form that was new to him. It is worth pointing out that no direct exchanges took place between Chagall and the mosaicists Papa and Rocchi during the project. This first foray into the world of mosaics marked the start of a string of monumental projects that would enrich his body of work.