Studying Henri Matisse
After starting our journal collaboration where we've all chosen
artists for our individual journals, I've rediscovered how rewarding
it is to learn more about great artists of the past.
came at just the right time!
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| Henri Matisse "The Lute" |
“The whole arrangement of my picture is expressive,”
said Matisse.
“The place occupied by the figures or objects, the empty
spaces around them,
the proportions, everything plays a part.”
Not sure what to do with these little studies . . .
they're around 4 x 6 inches. Cut up for collage?
Postcards? Journal pages? Save in an "inspiration" folder?
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| Henri Matisse "Seated Odalisque" |
Matisse's patterns are almost overwhelming,
but everything works beautifully together!
Flowing palm-shaped leaves show up often in Matisse's paintings.
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| Henri Matisse "La Musique" |
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| Henri Matisse "Still Life with Blue Tablecloth" |
Since I discovered the paintings that were the inspiration for
these quick watercolor studies, I've come across so many more
of his patterns that I'd love to try painting.
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| Henri Matisse "Decorative Figure Against an Ornamental Background" |
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| Henri Matisse "Odalisque with Yellow Persian Robe and Anemones" |
Awesome!
The
blue tablecloth in the painting is based on a textile which is also on
display – a nineteenth-century French printed cotton and linen fabric
Matisse apparently adored and called (incorrectly) his ‘toile de Jouy’.
The actual fabric consists of a delft blue pattern against a white
background, but in the painting, the white is transformed into aqua,
enriching the overall harmony. These imaginative transformations of
subject matter prove that Matisse was not a realist, but rather an
inventor of harmonies that have a tangible yet oblique relationship to
reality. Matisse uses the pattern the way he uses color, to extend his
representation of the subject, whether it is still life, figure or
interior. - See more at:
http://www.artcritical.com/2005/08/01/matisse-the-fabric-of-dreams-his-art-and-his-textiles/#sthash.uMi3IrLr.dpuf
The
blue tablecloth in the painting is based on a textile which is also on
display – a nineteenth-century French printed cotton and linen fabric
Matisse apparently adored and called (incorrectly) his ‘toile de Jouy’.
The actual fabric consists of a delft blue pattern against a white
background, but in the painting, the white is transformed into aqua,
enriching the overall harmony. These imaginative transformations of
subject matter prove that Matisse was not a realist, but rather an
inventor of harmonies that have a tangible yet oblique relationship to
reality. Matisse uses the pattern the way he uses color, to extend his
representation of the subject, whether it is still life, figure or
interior. - See more at:
http://www.artcritical.com/2005/08/01/matisse-the-fabric-of-dreams-his-art-and-his-textiles/#sthash.uMi3IrLr.dpuf
The
blue tablecloth in the painting is based on a textile which is also on
display – a nineteenth-century French printed cotton and linen fabric
Matisse apparently adored and called (incorrectly) his ‘toile de Jouy’.
The actual fabric consists of a delft blue pattern against a white
background, but in the painting, the white is transformed into aqua,
enriching the overall harmony. These imaginative transformations of
subject matter prove that Matisse was not a realist, but rather an
inventor of harmonies that have a tangible yet oblique relationship to
reality. Matisse uses the pattern the way he uses color, to extend his
representation of the subject, whether it is still life, figure or
interior. - See more at:
http://www.artcritical.com/2005/08/01/matisse-the-fabric-of-dreams-his-art-and-his-textiles/#sthash.uMi3IrLr.dpuf
