I painted my world, my life, all the things I loved, all the things I dreamed of, all the things I could not say in words. I painted my beloved Russia, my hometown Vitebsk, the Jewish neighborhood where I grew up, the way I saw everything as a child.

During prayers, he would daydream; in school, he was distracted; and at home he worried about what profession he should choose. But when the young Marc Chagall realized he had artistic talent, he translated his unusual way of looking at the world into color and shape.

Chagall grew up, became a painter, and traveled the world, but he never forgot about his hometown of Vitebsk, the place that shaped his character and inspired his art.

This book, loosely based on Chagall’s autobiography, gives readers a glimpse into the early life of one of the twentieth century’s most significant painters. Landmann’s charming three-dimensional mixed media illustrations celebrate the colorful, the whimsical, and the extraordinary aspects of Chagall’s life and work.