Marc Chagall (1887-1985), was a Russian-born (Vitebsk, today Belarus, Russia), French painter distinguished for his surrealistic creations.  He is one of the most recognized and influential artists of the 20th century.  Chagall had a lifelong fascination with works on paper and most particularly with the technical demands of etching and lithography.  His works treat subjects with humor and fantasy that draw deeply on the unconscious.  Chagall's unique imagery is suffused with exquisite poetic inspiration derived from Russian Expressionism and French Cubism.

For Marc Chagall, the circus was a magical disquieting little world of hidden depths made up of clowns, riders and acrobats.  Chagall was profoundly affected by their strange psychic forms made mysterious by their make-up, painted masks, gestures and grimaces.  He found the circus the most tragic of all dramatic performances being the most visceral quest for the amusement of man.  Chagall saw the circus as a high poetic form where he "seem(ed) to see a Don Quixote tilting at windmills, like the inspired clown who has known tears and dreams of human love".