Before the Picture (M.402), 1963

"Before the Picture (M.402)" is a lithograph created by Marc Chagall which was bound into Volume II of the Mourlot catalog raisonné of lithographs, printed in 1963. The total number of unsigned prints is unknown. The image size is 12.5 x 9.5" and the artwork ships framed and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. Marc Chagall is without doubt one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. He created a unique world full of pathos, poetry, humor and enchantment, drawing on vivid memories of his childhood in what is today Belarus. Though Marc Chagall’s work bares the formal influence of Cubism, Fauvism, and Symbolism, he steered away from total abstraction, instead holding fast to representation and proving its potency with a distinctly narrative approach. Dreamlike color and folkloric imagery pervade throughout Chagall’s oeuvre comprised of painting, printmaking, and book illustration. Clearly influenced by Byzantine and Russian icon painting and folk art, he wished his own