Crocifissione Bianca di Marc Chagall

On the occasion of the Jubilee 2025, the Dicastery for Evangelisation announced the fourth exhibition of the cultural review Jubilee is Culture, featuring Marc Chagall's famous White Crucifixion.
The White Crucifixion is recognised for its extraordinary ability to integrate religious and symbolic elements into a deeply evocative visual language. Its presence in Rome represents a unique opportunity for art lovers and scholars to contemplate a masterpiece of such great impact. Marc Chagall, born in Lëzna, Belarus, in 1887 and died in 1985, was a Russian painter naturalised French, considered one of the most significant artists of the 20th century. Forced to leave his homeland, Chagall always maintained a deep connection with his origins, even though he was aware that he could not settle there. His work is famous for paintings depicting dreamlike and fantastic scenarios, the expression of a personal style that broke away from the artistic currents of his time, drawing on the avant-garde and then going beyond it.

The White Crucifixion, painted in 1938, represents a fundamental turning point for Chagall. This work not only highlights the image of Christ as a martyr, but also dramatically draws attention to the persecution and suffering of the Jewish people in the 1930s. The painting illustrates the suffering of both Jews and Jesus by depicting violent conflicts, such as the burning of synagogues. In the centre, Jesus is depicted crucified, adorned with a prayer shawl, symbolically represented as a Jew. The White Crucifixion reveals influences from 14th century Italian art and presents a significant colouristic value. Thematic links with Renaissance religious painting, in particular the works of Michelangelo, and references to Rembrandt's Election of the Cross enrich the work's meaning. Surrounding Jesus are three biblical patriarchs and a matriarch, dressed in traditional Jewish garb. On either side of the cross, Chagall illustrates the devastation of the pogroms: on the left, a sacked village forces refugees to flee by boat, while three bearded figures escape on foot, one of them clutching the Torah. On the right, a synagogue and the ark of the Torah are in flames, while below, a mother comforts her child. Together with Pablo Picasso's Guernica, the White Crucifixion is one of the 20th century's most eloquent condemnations of war and hatred, with a message that is still dramatically relevant today.

The scenes of destruction, death and violence

Around the crucified Christ there are scenes of destruction, death and violence interconnected with each other. Above are three men and a woman floating in the air. They are in despair: a couple are weeping, bringing their hands to their faces, while the other two, praying, ask for the violence to end as soon as possible. To the left, a group of soldiers advance armed while waving red flags. These soldiers symbolise the men who took part in the pogroms, the terrible anti-Semitic violence that struck Jews in Russia between 1881 and 1921 (and after World War II continued to attack Shoah survivors).

Burning houses

Closely related to the scene above of the group of soldiers, the artist depicts houses burning. Beyond the fire, destruction is perceived in the disordered elements that appear in this scene and by the depiction of upside-down houses. In addition, three victims of the pogroms are depicted, kneeling and grieving.

The boat with the fugitives

The artist has painted a boat full of Jewish refugees who are trying to drop anchor to save themselves and dock on safe land. A scene that is still very relevant today, expressing the flight from the homelands in the hope of saving their lives in parts of the world untainted by war and devastation.

Symbols of Jewish culture

In the lower left foreground, three men are depicted walking away carrying some objects. During this atrocious violence, the Word of God must be saved. The last in the row, dressed in dark blue, has the Torah, the Jewish Law, in his arms. In the bottom centre is the Menorah, the 7-armed Jewish candelabrum (although only 6 are seen here) that stands guard over Jesus on the cross. To the right of Chagall's White Crucifixion is a scroll that is burning, producing white flames that reach up to the cross: these are the books of Holy Scripture. Finally, to the top right is a synagogue burning representing all the synagogues burnt in Germany during World War II. Inside this detail, a man tries to save the scrolls of the Jewish Law from the building's cupboard, while at the top of the building one can see the two tablets of the Ten Commandments and the Star of David, two other characteristic symbols of the Jewish religion.

The deep spiritual meaning of the artwork

The profound spiritual significance of the work offers the visitor an opportunity for extraordinary meditation, making the enjoyment of this masterpiece not only a moment of exceptional artistic value, but also an important opportunity for introspection and reflection on the mystery of the cross, a symbol of hope for redemption and resurrection after atrocities, and victory over death.