White Crucifixion by Chagall

"White Crucifixion" (1938) by Marc Chagall is a direct response to the growing anti-Semitism and the violent events of the terrible night of November 9, 1938, and the pogroms in Europe. Painted shortly after the "Night of Broken Glass" (in German, "Kristallnacht") of November 1938, this painting reflects the suffering of the Jewish people through the image of the crucified Christ, who, in this work, becomes a symbol of Jewish martyrdom. Unlike traditional representations of the crucifixion, Chagall uses distinctly Jewish elements: Christ is depicted wearing a “Tallit Gadol” (Hebrew: טלית גדול), clearly associated with the Ashkenazi tradition and identifiable by the black stripes running along its lower edge. This prayer shawl, traditional though not exclusive to Jewish communities of Eastern Europe, deliberately replaces conventional Christian textile iconography, thereby underscoring the Jewish identity of the Redeemer, his suffering, and his profound empathy with the anguish of his people.

The composition of the painting is divided into chaotic scenes of persecution and destruction, evoking the pogroms that struck the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe. Around him, flames devour synagogues, and people flee, showing the desperation of a people under horrific attack. The use of white in the central scene of the Crucifixion accentuates the figure of Christ amid the surrounding chaos, elevating principles of purity and innocence above the brutality of fear and the violence of antisemitism. A beam of light that bathes the central figure and spills across the rest of the composition reveals the mystery of a salvific mission embodied by a single man, destined to bring reconciliation to all.

Chagall, influenced by surrealism and symbolism, blends the real and the spiritual in this painting, where earthly suffering connects with the divine. Through "The White Crucifixion," the painter not only denounces the violence against Jews but also issues a call to the world about the urgency of stopping this tragedy. The work was a prophetic vision of the horrors that were approaching with World War II.