ART

The Pompidou Center in Paris is displaying more than 400 works by the Russian-born painter Marc Chagall, which were turned over to the government in lieu of taxes. Many of them have never been seen before in public. Chagall died in 1985 at his home in southern France at the age of 97. Working steadily until the end, he left behind a vast private collection of oil paintings, drawings, mosaics, sketches, book illustrations, set designs, and engravings worth countless millions of dollars. Chagall’s works represent the second largest donation (Pablo Picasso’s were the largest) accepted in lieu of death duties. “The paintings look fine in Paris, but they weren’t bad in my house either,” said Chagall’s widow, known as Vava, during a tour of the show. The exhibition closes June 5.