Pliouchkine at the Door (Pliouchkine à la porte), plate XL (supplementary suite) from Les Âmes mortes

Pliouchkine at the Door (Pliouchkine à la porte), plate XL (supplementary suite) from Les Âmes mortes by Marc Chagall is a compelling example of the artist’s graphic achievement, dating to 1923. This work was produced using the complex combination of etching and drypoint, techniques that allowed Chagall to achieve rich, dense blacks and delicate, expressive lines essential for illustrating complex literary narratives. The piece serves as an integral component of the Illustrated Book project for Nikolay Gogol’s satirical novel, Dead Souls (Les Âmes mortes), a major commission undertaken for the dealer Ambroise Vollard.

The image interprets the encounter with the character Pliouchkine, the miserly and profoundly neglected landowner whose decay mirrors the moral stagnation of Gogol’s Russia. Chagall’s approach integrates the psychological distress of the character with his signature visual vocabulary, positioning distorted figures within compressed and claustrophobic architectural spaces. This classification as a French cultural production highlights the pivotal role Chagall played in the Parisian art world during the early 20th century. Executed early in the designated period of 1923-48, the piece showcases Chagall’s successful transition into printmaking, maintaining the emotional intensity and dreamlike quality prevalent in his later painting.

While the primary portfolio for Les Âmes mortes is well known, Pliouchkine at the Door belongs specifically to the supplementary suite, an indication of its unique status within the limited edition. These prints are highly valued both for their technical mastery and for their successful fusion of Russian literary heritage with European modernist expression. Today, high-quality images and related documentation for graphic works by the artist often find their way into public domain resources, ensuring continued study of the master illustrator. This significant plate currently resides within the esteemed collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), cementing its importance in the history of 20th-century prints.