Henri Matisse French Painter and Collage Artist

Henri Matisse Born on December 31, 1869 Birth place is Le Cateau, France Father was a local grain merchant Went to Paris in 1887 to study law

Henri Matisse 1890 Henri suffered an attack of appendicitis Discover the love of painting 1891, became a full time art student in Paris Worked under: Adolphe Bouguereau Gustave Moreau Showed skill as a “copyist”

Portrait of Madame Matisse The Green Strip 1905

Henri Matisse Henri discovered the paintings of Pissarro, Cezanne, Monet, Gauguin and other revolutionary artists of the day. Matisse began to experiment with some revolutionary art techniques, including Impressionism and pointillism.

Promenade among the Olive Trees 1905-1906

Henri Matisse Matisse married Amélie Payrayre in 1898 Divided his time between the family home, his studio in Paris and another studio in Nice, on the French Riviera. Exhibited Woman with the Hat Given the nickname les Fauves (French for “Wild Beasts”)

Woman with a Hat. 1905. Oil on canvas. A portrait of his wife His brilliantly colored paintings were considered barbaric.

Fauvism Matisse was rejected by the art establishment in France Around 1907 Matisse ended his ties with the Fauves and never again belonged to any particular art movement.

1908 Oil on canvas Harmony in Red

Henri Matisse 1913 Armory show in New York City – included 13 of his paintings. Armory Show introduced Europe’s modern art to the United States. His works displayed tremendous variety, ranging in style from simple and almost Cubist to rich and decorative.

Henri Matisse The American writer Gertrude Stein and her brother Leo were early collectors and supporters of Matisse paintings. Another admirer became Pablo Picasso with whom he exchanged paintings in 1907. After World War I, Matisse had gained a high reputation and was an internationally recognized artist. In 1917 he left Paris and settled in Nice in the South of France where he remained until the end of his life.

Nasturtiums with the Painting “Dance” 1912 In 1925 he received the French Legion of Honor award

Henri Matisse In 1941, Matisse was in his 70’s, he underwent an cancer intestinal operation. In the last years of his life, he created paper cut-outs in the same vivid, strong colors and daring compositions known from his paintings.

The Snail 1953 Goauche on cut-paper He had an assistant and could work lying in bed or sitting comfortably in an arm-chair.

Collage Artist He also completed his designs for the small chapel at Vence 1943-48 Friends with a Dominican nun He died in Nice on November 3, 1954.

Blue Nude IV 1952 Gouache on paper cut out. Musée Henri Matisse Nice, France. 

Henri Matisse Along with Picasso, Matisse is considered one of the two foremost artists of the modern period. His contribution to 20th-century art is inestimably great. Pablo Picasso once said about the artist: "All things considered, there is only Matisse".