Tchitchikov's Farewell to Manilov (Les Adieux de Tchitchikov à Manilov), plate XII (supplementary suite) from Les Âmes mortes

Tchitchikov's Farewell to Manilov (Les Adieux de Tchitchikov à Manilov), plate XII (supplementary suite) from Les Âmes mortes is an evocative etching created by Marc Chagall in 1923. This important print forms part of Chagall’s monumental suite of illustrations for Nikolai Gogol’s satirical novel Dead Souls (Les Âmes mortes). The creation of this ambitious project, commissioned by the influential French publisher Ambroise Vollard, was crucial in cementing Chagall’s reputation within the Parisian art scene during the early 1920s.

Executed in the demanding medium of etching, the composition features the characteristic dreamlike figures and expressive, scratchy lines that define Chagall’s graphic output. The scene captures the interaction between the protagonist, Pavel Ivanovich Tchitchikov, and the excessively sentimental, ineffective landowner Manilov, whose character embodies impractical idealism. As a work from the supplementary suite, Tchitchikov's Farewell to Manilov showcases the intensity of the artist's engagement with Gogol's complex text. Chagall employs stark contrasts and distorted visual elements, eschewing traditional representation to perfectly capture the absurdity and dark humor inherent in the author’s biting critique of Russian provincial society. The heavy, shadow-laden aesthetic of the print technique heightens the narrative’s somber, satirical tone.

Although illustrating a quintessential Russian text, the development of these prints occurred during the artist's fertile French period, specifically falling within the artistic output of the 1923-48 span. This positioning integrates the work firmly within the Modernist tradition of the livre d'artiste (artist's book). This specific print, classified as an Illustrated Book component, resides in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), demonstrating Chagall’s skillful translation of literary narrative into the visual language of early twentieth-century Expressionism and Surrealism.