Each piece of Chagall's that I saw revolved around historical events, personal events and shared experiences. I felt deeply connected to the Jewish aspects of Chagall’s work, but when I tried to research this part of his art, I was unsatisfied with what I found. It felt as though his traditions were erased, which was particularly upsetting because I learned he primarily painted Jewish traditions and memories of home because he felt that the traditions that he grew up with were disappearing. His art was his way of preserving them for the next generations.

For my class project we each had to make a piece that was heavily inspired by our chosen artist’s style, yet also had our own elements. I chose to make a piece that was inspired by “America Windows.” 

Chagall made the windows to celebrate America’s second century of existence and featured iconic American landmarks, such as the Statue of Liberty and the Chicago skyline. I made my work to celebrate my family’s existence with our own landmarks.

I drew my design on parchment paper. I used multiple coats of Sharpies to act as the lines between each piece of glass. To replicate the colors and shifting light, I used two arduinos (small computers), ten LEDs (eight of which were RGB LEDs meaning that I could customize the colors that they emitted), 63 wires and two nine-volt batteries. I had coded each color value and each LED group. The lights shone through the parchment, echoing the way the light shines through Chagall’s windows. The lights shifted colors and gently pulsed and shifted location, mimicking the way the light changes through stained glass as the sun moves in the sky. The final product was beautiful. The final step was to present it to my peers in class.

I've written an article about this project for HeyAlma, which is linked here.