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HENRI MATISSE By Laura Grant

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Matisse : Master of Color and Form Henri Matisse was one of the most influential figures in modern art history. His use of bold colors, broad strokes, flat patterns, and free forms would help to inspire other artists to break away from the pictorial traditions set by the previous Impressionist movement. Collectively, their work was known as Fauvism (wild beasts), and would eventually give rise to more abstract art, such as Cubism and Surrealism.

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Early Life Born December 31, 1869 in a small industrial town in northern France. Studied in Paris to become a lawyer. While recovering from appendicitis, started painting. Decided to change career path. Studied at two premier art schools in Paris. First, the Acadmie Julian and then the cole des Beaux. Style closely resembled that of previous masters.

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Woman Reading This is one of Matisses first paintings. The colors are muted and the forms are traditional and within perspective.

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Matisses Breakthrough Matisses instructor, Moreau, encouraged individuality. Studies for a year in England in 1898. Marries his wife, Amelie, same year. Matisse was greatly influenced by Cezanne and van Gogh, as well as Cross and Signac. Experiments with Pointillism, eventually creating his own style. Reveals his new technique at a large exhibition. A critic snubs the work as that of a wild beast, and thus dubs the new style as Fauvism.

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Pointillism vs Fauvism Paul Signac, Woman with a Parasol -1893 Henri Matisse, Woman with a Hat -1905

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Fauvism Fauvism literally means wild beasts. Characterized by bold colors, flat patterns, and free or distorted forms to convey emotion. Matisses younger colleagues dubbed him the King of the Beasts. Many of Matisses colleagues would move on to Cubism, which was mastered by his rival, Pablo Picasso.

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Matisses Fauvism Green Stripe - 1905

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Self Portrait - 1906

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The Joy of Living - 1906

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Harmony In Red - 1908

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Matisses Success Despite Some critics, Matisse enjoyed a good level of success. Commissioned to do mural panels for a Russian. Gertrude Stein, a prominent collector, purchased Matisses work. Had several exhibitions of his works that delighted his audience. By 1920, Matisses works were world-renown. Was able to travel across Europe and North Africa, where he gained more inspiration for later work.

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Dance and Music - Mural Panels 1910

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Gertrude Steins Collection Girl with Green Eyes - 1908

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Boy with a Butterfly Net - 1907

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Blue Nude - 1907

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Later Life Matisse had three children with his wife. He tutored artists without pay for fear of being tied down to one place. He eventually settled in southern France in the city of Nice. He was commissioned to design the stained-glass at a chapel in Vence. He illustrated a poetry book and did some sculptures. From 1940 on, Matisse was too sick to paint. Instead, he cut out colored paper and pasted it to canvass. He compiled his works along with his written thoughts in a volume called Jazz. Matisse died in 1954 at the age of 84.

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Drawings by Matisse

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Jazz

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Matisse on his art: "What I dream of is an art of balance, of purity and serenity, devoid of troubling or disturbing subject matter...a soothing, calming influence on the mind, something like a good armchair which provides relaxation from physical fatigue."