Above, is a delightful short clip of an elderly Matisse at work on what look like the motifs for one of his underwater pictures. Even if I did not have the chance to see this exhibition, I would have been able to have an impression from this good (but slightly dizzying) introductory video from Tate Modern here. Like all the blockbuster exhibitions, this one is very busy and sometimes crowded but well worth the visit. Even those who don't appreciate the art on show as wonderful will still be cheered by the profusion of bright colours and simple unambiguous shapes that abound. For me the first impression was the abundance of colour, and the overwhelming feeling that it would be great fun to try this out for myself; followed by an appreciation of the volume and diversity of work.
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| Blue Nude I |
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| Blue Nude II |
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| Blue Nude III |
Matisse could then
cut out the shapes he wanted and have them arrange the pieces by pinning
them up on the wall. Some of his works were found to have hundreds of
pin-holes so this was obviously a painstaking process. One of the most
iconic works of this period in Matisse's career is the Blue Nude I-IV series (1952), (above left, right and below), 116x82cm. The sketches and pre-drawings for these show quite a difference in style from Matisse's painting of
nudes in his work, e.g. Decorative Figure on an Ornamental Ground (1925-6), below, (not in the exhibition.)
In many ways, the most interesting aspect of this exhibition is the appreciation of the changes and development of Matisse's style over these last ten years, and the marked mirroring I found between his and Picasso's work when I read Yve-Alain Bois' 2001 book (Matisse and Picasso). That Picasso was influenced by Matisse, I had already read, but that Matisse was influenced by Picasso was a new idea to explore. I will definitely study this in more depth.
nudes in his work, e.g. Decorative Figure on an Ornamental Ground (1925-6), below, (not in the exhibition.)
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| Decorative Fig. on an Ornamental Ground |
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| Blue Nude IV |
In many ways, the most interesting aspect of this exhibition is the appreciation of the changes and development of Matisse's style over these last ten years, and the marked mirroring I found between his and Picasso's work when I read Yve-Alain Bois' 2001 book (Matisse and Picasso). That Picasso was influenced by Matisse, I had already read, but that Matisse was influenced by Picasso was a new idea to explore. I will definitely study this in more depth.
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| Picasso - Seated Bather, 1930 |
There is no doubt that these two gifted men were very interested in the each other's work, and Picasso visited Matisse in Nice while he was working on the Blue Nude Series. So he must have noticed the move towards reducing the figure to a series of planes that Matisse was using in these figures ( and in the numerous sketches he had made in preparation.) Did Picasso take it as a tribute to his work, I wonder, or were the feelings of rivalry increased by this possible homage.
The works in this exhibition are all from the time that Matisse was living in Vence, in the hills above Nice. There is a lovely film shown in one of the galleries of Matisse pinning up some cutouts straight onto the walls of his room and having his assistants move them around until they were in exactly the right place. The motifs were often inspired by the ocean, and resulted in huge calm and serene panels like the one below.
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| Oceania, The Sky, 1946 Gouache on paper and mounted on canvas. 178.3 x 369.7cm |
My favourite pieces of all, though are a little maquette of Icarus (below right) for his amazing book, Jazz, which Matisse completed in 1943 (the book came later)and Matisse's Acrobats, 1952 (below left). At only 16.5 x 10.2 inches, Icarus isn't large but it is so powerful that it stands out from quite a distance. The technique used was "pochoir"which involved using stencils to print.
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There is so much to see and appreciate in this exhibition, including Matisse's designs for the chapel in Vence, the robes for the priests and the murals for the walls. The drawings for the stained glass windows are exhibited, but the video above (6 mins) is a wonderful look at them in situ. This exhibition was breathtaking - I'll be going back.
References:
Bois,Yve-Alain: Matisse and Picasso, 2001, originally published to accompany the exhibition Matisse and Picasso:AGentle Rivalry, Kimbell Art Museum,Fort Worth, Texas, 1999.Published by Flamarrion, Paris
Matisse, Henri and Castleman, Riva. Jazz 1947. Limited edition of 20 plates.
Video in 2 x 15-min parts, with Alistair Sooke presenting:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuJKHKEBfmY (part 1)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5somtBX1gC8 (part 2)
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