Marc Chagall (1887-1985) was a Jewish Belorussian-French and an early Modernist. His whimsical, semi-abstract painting style acted as a precursor to Surrealism. Although Russian, his heart was in Paris, yet as aJewish man, during the Second World War, he travelled extensively even taking refuge in New York City with his family. After the war he returned to France where he remained for the rest of his life. Many of his works include his wife and muse Bella with the backdrop of Paris or his hometown, Vitebsk. In his later years Chagall designed stage backdrops for ballets and theatres. He also excelled in the printmaking and mastered the art of staining glass windows. Hailed as 'the godfather of Surrealism' he was also the last surviving Modernist, and is deemed one ofthe greatest artists from the early 20th Century.