Matisse artist biography briefly. Famous paintings by Henri Matisse. Picasso in the life of Matisse

The brightness of the colors, the simplicity of the technique, the expression - the paintings of the French artist Henri Matisse amaze with their originality. The leader of Fauvism tried a bunch of trends in the fine arts before he found own style, characterized by a “wild” character.

Childhood and youth

The birthplace of the great artist is the northern town of Le Cateau-Cambresy in France. Here in 1869, the first child was born into the family of a successful grain merchant, who was named Henri Emile Benoit Matisse. The child's fate was predetermined - at that time, the first heir in the family was obliged to take over his father's business in the future. But, apparently, the boy inherited the genes of his mother, who loved to while away free time for painting ceramic crafts.

Henri was thoroughly prepared for the future; he studied at school, then at the lyceum. Next, the obstinate son, against the will of the head of the family, went to Paris to study legal sciences. With a diploma that was far from art, he returned home, where he worked for several months as a clerk.

The disease decided the fate. The creative biography of the gifted artist began in 1889, when Henri Matisse fell under the surgeon’s knife with appendicitis.

It took two months to recover after the operation. To keep her son from getting bored, his mother brought drawing supplies to the hospital, and Matisse began selflessly copying color postcards. At this time, the young man finally understood what he wanted to devote his life to.

Painting

The dream of becoming a student at the capital's School of Fine Arts was not a given. Henri failed his debut application, so he had to sit at others’ desks first educational institutions, where they were introduced to the basics of painting. And yet, in 1895, the “fortress” surrendered - along with the future famous artist Albert Marquet Matisse entered the coveted School of Art, in the workshop of Gustave Moreau.

At the beginning of his career, his interests included contemporary art; Henri Matisse was also curious about the Japanese movement. A symbolist to the core, Moreau sent students to learn to “play with color” at the Louvre, where Henri tried to imitate the classics of painting by copying paintings. The master taught to “dream about color,” which is where the artist Matisse’s passion for finding suitable shades to convey emotions arose.

IN early work a mixture of Moreau's teachings with elements borrowed from recognized masters of the brush had already appeared. For example, the still life “Bottle of Schiedam” is notable for its ambiguity: on the one hand, dark colors indicate an imitation of Chardin, and the broad strokes and mixture of black and silver - . Henri later admitted:

“I perceive the expressive side of color purely intuitively. When conveying an autumn landscape, I will not remember which shades of color are suitable for this time of year, I will only be inspired by the sensations of autumn... I choose colors not according to some scientific theory, but according to feeling, observation and experience.”

The artist quickly became bored with studying the classics, and he turned to the Impressionists, in particular, he worshiped canvases. The color in the early works was still dull, but gradually gained richness; the tendency towards impressionism began to transform into its own unique style. Already in 1896, the first creations of the novice painter began to appear in art salons.

The first personal exhibition did not create a sensation among art connoisseurs. Henri Matisse decided to leave the French capital further to the north, where he tried his hand at the technique of dot strokes. At this time, the first masterpiece came from his pen - “Luxury, Peace and Pleasure.” But the man did not find this style of writing “native”.

The revolution in the artist’s work occurred in 1905. Matisse, together with a group of like-minded people, created new style in painting, called Fauvism. The energy of colors presented at the exhibition in the fall shocked the audience. Henri presented two works - the portrait “Woman in a Hat” and the painting “Open Window”.

A wave of indignation hit the artists; visitors to the exhibition did not understand how one could so neglect all the traditions of fine art. The founders of the style were called Fauves, that is, savages.

However, such attention, albeit negative, brought Matisse popularity and good dividends: the paintings gained fans who bought them with pleasure. For example, “Woman with a Hat” was immediately taken away from the exhibition by the American writer Gertrude Stein, and the painting “The Joy of Life,” which appeared in 1906, was bought by the famous collector Leo Stein.

It happened a little later significant event– the artist met an unknown person, communication resulted in decades of friendship, during which masters of the brush competed with each other. Picasso said that the death of any of them would be an irreparable loss for everyone, because there was no one else to discuss some creative issues so vigorously.

The two most famous paintings– “Dance” and “Music” – Matisse wrote for philanthropist Sergei Shchukin. A Russian ordered paintings for a house in Moscow. The artist, working on the sketches, set a goal to create something so that whoever entered the mansion would feel relief and peace. It is interesting that Henri personally supervised the installation of the paintings - the Frenchman came to the capital of Russia, where he was received with delight. The artist himself was impressed by the collection of ancient icons of the owner of the house and the simplicity of the Russians.

Apparently, the artist received a good fee, because he immediately went on a trip. I visited the oriental fairy tale of Algeria, and upon returning home, I immediately sat down to work - the painting “Blue Nude” saw the light of day. This trip made an indelible impression on Matisse; new elements appeared in his work; the man created lithographs, engravings on ceramics and wood.

The charm of the East did not let go, the Frenchman continued to get acquainted with Africa, traveling to Morocco. And then he went on a trip to Europe and America. At this time, his work gradually began to lose the signs of Fauvism, filling with subtlety and special depth, a connection with nature appeared.

During World War II, the artist was diagnosed with cancer; after the operation, the man could not move. During that period, Matisse invented a new direction in the field of decoupage, which was based on the composition of paintings from pieces of colored paper.

Henri Matisse put an end to his creativity with a large-scale design project for a convent in Vence. They say that the artist was asked only to edit the stained glass sketches, but he enthusiastically rolled up his sleeves and created a complete project. By the way, the man considered this work to be a kind of sign of fate at the end of his life and the best in his collection of artistic works.

Personal life

The personal life of Henri Matisse was decorated by three women. In 1984, the artist became a father for the first time - model Carolina Zhoblo gave the talented painter a daughter, Margarita. However, Henri did not marry this girl at all.

Official spouse became Amelie Pareire, whom the representative of the world of painting met at a friend’s wedding. The girl acted as a bridesmaid, and Henri was accidentally seated next to him at the table. Amelie was struck by love at first sight, the young man also began to show signs of attention. The girl became the first close person who believed in his talent unconditionally.

Before the wedding, the groom warned the bride that work would always occupy the main place in life. Even on honeymoon the newly-made family went to London to get acquainted with creativity.

The marriage produced sons Jean-Gerard and Pierre. The couple also took Margarita into their family to raise. For many years, the daughter and wife occupied the places of the artist’s main models and muses. One of the famous paintings dedicated to his wife is “Green Stripe,” painted in 1905.

This portrait of a beloved woman struck art connoisseurs of the time as “ugly.” Viewers believed that the representative of Fauvism went too far with the brightness of colors and frank truthfulness.

At the peak of his popularity, which occurred in the 30s, the artist needed an assistant. Matisse moved with his family to Nice at that time. One day, a young Russian emigrant, Lydia Delectorskaya, appeared in the house and became the painter’s secretary. At first, the wife did not see a danger in the girl - her husband did not like fair-haired people. But the situation changed instantly: by chance seeing Lydia in his wife’s bedroom, Henri rushed to draw her.

Subsequently, Amelie divorced her famous husband, and Dillectorskaya became the last muse Matisse. What kind of relationship reigned in this union, whether it was love, or whether the couple was limited to working together, is still not known. Among the scattering of drawings and paintings depicting Lydia, the painting “Odalisque” stands out. Blue Harmony."

Death

On November 1, 1954, Henri Matisse suffered a microstroke. Two days later great artist passed away. Legend has it that Dillectorskaya, just before her death, visited the painter in the bedroom, where she said:

“Another day you’d say, let’s get a pencil and paper.”

Henri replied with a smile:

“Give me a pencil and paper.”

Works

• 1896 – “Bottle of Schiedam”
• 1905 – “Joy of Life”
• 1905 – “Woman in a Hat”
• 1905 – “Green Stripe”
• 1905 – “Open Window in Collioure”
• 1907 – “Blue Nude”
• 1908 – “The Red Room”
• 1910 – “Music”
• 1916 – “Bather by the River”
• 1935 – “Pink Nude”
• 1937 – “Woman in a Purple Coat”
• 1940 – “Romanian Blouse”
• 1952 – “The King’s Sadness”

Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse (1869–1954), an outstanding French artist. Born December 31, 1869 in Le Cateau in northern France. In 1892 he came to Paris, where he studied at the Julian Academy, and later with Gustave Moreau. The search for a direct transfer of sensations with the help of intense color, simplified drawing and flat images was reflected in the works he presented at the exhibition of the “wild” (Fauve) at the Autumn Salon of 1905. He exhibits a number of works. These works, which created a scandalous sensation, marked the beginning of Fauvism. At this time, Matisse discovered the sculpture of the peoples of Africa, began collecting it, and became interested in classical Japanese woodcuts and Arabic decorative arts. By 1906 he completed work on the composition “The Joy of Life”, the plot of which was inspired by the poem “The Afternoon of a Faun” by S. Mallarmé: the plot combines pastoral and bacchanalia motifs. The first lithographs, woodcuts, and ceramics appeared. Matisse's graphics combine arabesque with a subtle rendering of the sensual charm of nature. In 1907, Matisse travels through Italy (Venice, Padua, Florence, Siena). In “Notes of a Painter” (1908), he formulates his artistic principles and speaks of the need for “emotions through simple means.” Students from different countries appear in Henri Matisse's workshop.
"Self-Portrait" 1918, Matisse Museum, Le Cate-Cambrai, France

In 1908, S.I. Shchukin ordered the artist three decorative panels for his own house in Moscow. The panel “Dance” (1910, Hermitage) presents an ecstatic dance inspired by impressions of S. Diaghilev’s Russian seasons, Isadora Duncan’s performances and Greek vase painting. In Music, Matisse presents isolated figures singing and playing various instruments. The third panel - “Bathing, or Meditation” - remains only in sketches. Exhibited at the Paris Salon before being sent to Russia, Matisse's compositions caused a scandal with the shocking nudity of the characters and the unexpectedness of the interpretation of the images. In connection with the installation of the panel, Matisse visited Moscow, gave several interviews for newspapers and expressed his admiration for ancient Russian painting. In the painting “Red Fishes” (1911, Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow), using the techniques of elliptical and reverse perspectives, the roll call of tones and the contrast of green and red, Matisse creates the effect of fish circling in a glass vessel. In the winter months from 1911 to 1913, the artist visited Tangier (Morocco), created the Moroccan triptych “View from a Window in Tangier,” “Zora on the Terrace” and “Entrance to the Kasbah” (1912, ibid.), acquired by I. A. Morozov. The effects of blue shadows and blinding rays of the sun are masterfully conveyed.

"Dishes and Fruit" 1901 Hermitage

John McLaughlin - "The Peacocks" ("The Promise")

"Woman with a Hat" (Portrait of a Wife) 1904 - Presented at the 1905 Salon.

"Still life with vase, bottle and fruit" 1903-1906 Hermitage

"The Square in Saint-Tropez" 1904 Museum of Art, Copenhagen

"Window" 1916 Institute of Art, Detroit

"Raised Knee" 1922, Private collection

After the First World War, Matisse mainly lived in Nice. In 1920 he performed sketches of scenery and costumes for I. Stravinsky’s ballet “The Nightingale” (choreography by L. Massine, production by S. Diaghilev). Under the influence of the painting of O. Renoir, whom Matisse met in Nice, he became interested in depicting models in light clothes (the “odalisque” cycle); interested in Rococo masters. In 1930 he traveled to Tahiti, worked on two versions of decorative panels for the Barnes Foundation in Merion (Philadelphia), which were to be placed above high windows main exhibition hall. The theme of the panel is dance. The eight figures are presented against a background consisting of pink and blue stripes, the figures themselves being a grayish-pink tone. The compositional solution is deliberately flat and decorative.
In the process of creating sketches, Matisse began to use the technique of cuttings from colored paper (“decoupage”), which he later widely used (for example, in the “Jazz” series, 1944-47, later reproduced in lithographs). Before World War II, Matisse illustrated books produced in small editions (engraving or lithography). For Diaghilev's productions he makes sketches of the scenery of the ballet “Red and Black” to the music of D. Shostakovich. He works extensively and fruitfully with plastic arts, continuing the traditions of A. Bari, O. Rodin, E. Degas and A. E. Bourdelle. His painting style is noticeably simplified; drawing as the basis of the composition is revealed more and more clearly (“Romanian Blouse”, 1940, J. Pompidou Center for Contemporary Art). In 1948-53, commissioned by the Dominican Order, he worked on the construction and decoration of the “Chapel of the Rosary” in Vence. An openwork cross hovers above the ceramic roof depicting the sky with clouds; above the entrance to the chapel there is a ceramic panel depicting St. Dominic and the Virgin Mary. Other panels, executed according to the master’s sketches, are placed in the interior; the artist is extremely stingy with details, restless black lines dramatically tell the story of the Last Judgment (the western wall of the chapel); next to the altar is an image of Dominic himself. This last work of Matisse, to which he attached great importance, is a synthesis of many of his previous quests. Matisse worked in different genres and types of art and used a variety of techniques. In plastic, as in graphics, he preferred to work in series (for example, four versions of the relief “Standing with her back to the viewer,” 1930-40, J. Pompidou Center for Contemporary Art, Paris).
The world of Matisse is a world of dances and pastorals, music and musical instruments, beautiful vases, juicy fruits and greenhouse plants, various vessels, carpets and colorful fabrics, bronze figurines and endless views from the window (the artist’s favorite motif). His style is distinguished by the flexibility of lines, sometimes intermittent, sometimes rounded, conveying various silhouettes and outlines (“Themes and Variations”, 1941, charcoal, pen), clearly rhythmicizing his strictly thought-out, mostly balanced compositions.
The laconicism of refined artistic means, coloristic harmonies, combining either bright contrasting harmonies, or the balance of local large spots and masses of color, serve the artist’s main goal - to convey pleasure from the sensual beauty of external forms.
In addition, Matisse was strongly influenced by the works of Islamic art shown at the Munich exhibition. The two winters the artist spent in Morocco (1912 and 1913) enriched him with knowledge of oriental motifs, and his long life on the Riviera contributed to the development of a bright palette. Unlike contemporary cubism, Matisse’s work was not speculative, but was based on a scrupulous study of nature and the laws of painting. His paintings of female figures, still lifes and landscapes may seem minor in subject matter, but are the result of a long study of natural forms and their bold simplification. Matisse managed to harmoniously express the immediate emotional sensation of reality in the strictest artistic form. An excellent draftsman, Matisse was primarily a colorist, achieving the effect of coordinated sound in a composition of many intense colors. Matisse died on November 3, 1954 in Cimiez, near Nice.

Matisse's early still lifes

"Still Life" 1890

"Woman Reading" 1894

"Studio of Gustave Moreau" 1895

"The Maid" 1896

"Blue Pot and Lemon" 1897. Oil on canvas. Hermitage

"Dinner table" 1897

"Fruit and coffeepot" 1899 Hermitage

"Self-Portrait"

"Still life with oranges 1899

"Workshop in the Attic" 1903. Oil on canvas. Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK

"The Happiness of Existence (The Joy of Living)" 1905-06 Barnes Foundation, Lincoln University, Merion, Pennsylvania

"Sailor" 1906

Unusual portraits of Matisse

"Self-portrait" 1900 Centa. Georges Pompidou

"Auguste Pellerin" (II) 1916

"Greta Mall" 1908, National Gallery, London

"Self-portrait in a striped shirt" 1906 State Museum of Copenhagen

"Portrait of the Artist's Wife" 1912-13 Hermitage

"Italian" 1916

"Aicha and Lorette" 1917

"White Feather" 1919

"Portrait of Sarah Stein" 1916

In 1914, the best works of Matisse, which belonged to Michael and Sarah Stein, disappeared in Germany while taking part in an exhibition in Berlin shortly before the outbreak of the First World War. Two years later, Matisse produced paired portraits of Michael and Sarah Stein, his most devoted early collectors, to compensate for the works they had lost in Berlin.

"Portrait of Michael Stein" 1916

"Tea Party in the Garden" 1919

"Lorette with Cup of Coffee" 1917

"Figure on a background of ornament" 1925-26. Center Pompidou, Paris

"Laurette in a White Turban" 1916 Ch.k

"Ballerina, harmony in green" 1927. Ch.k

"Greta Prozor" 1916

Andre Derain "Portrait of Henri Matisse" 1905

"Portrait of Andre Derain" 1905. Oil on canvas. Tate Gallery, London, UK

"Madame Matisse" 1907

"Dream" 1935

More still lifes by Matisse

"Blue Tablecloth" 1909

"Greek Torso with Flowers" 1919

"Vase with oranges" 1916. Ch.k.

"Still life with mirror"

"Interior with a violin" 1917-18 State Museum of Copenhagen

And again portraits

"Woman in a Hat with Flowers" 1919

"Ballerina" 1927 Collection of Otto Krebs, Holzdorf. Now in the Hermitage

"Girl in a blue blouse" (Portrait of Lydia Delectorskaya, the artist's assistant). 1939 Hermitage

"Girl in Pink" 1942

"Girl in green with a carnation" 1909. Hermitage

"Portrait of Margarita" 1906-1907

"The Girl with Green Eyes" 1908

"Three Sisters" 1916

"The Music Lesson" 1917 Barnes Foundation, University of Lincoln

"Laurette in a Red Dress" 1917

"Yvonne Landsberg" 1914. Etching Philadelphia Museum of Art

"Lorette in a green dress, on a black background" 1916

Oriental themes in Matisse's paintings

"Harmony in Red Colors" 1908. X, M. Hermitage

"Resident of Tsora on the terrace" 1912 Pushkin Museum im. A.S. Pushkin

"Moorish Room" 1923

"Odalisque in red trousers" 1917

"Marabout" 1912

"Moroccan Garden" 1912

"Moroccan in Greece" 1912-13. Hermitage

"Moorish woman with raised hands" 1923

"Odalisque with Magnolia" 1924

"Conversation" 1909

"Odalisque with a tambourine" 1926

"Nude on a blue pillow" 1924 Ch.k.

"Asia" 1946

"Blue Nude with Hair in the Wind" 1952

"Blue Nude. Memories of Biskra" 1907

This painting was painted after a visit to Algeria. In its incomprehensible execution, brutal configuration and twisting pose, this painting is one of the key works in his career and in Western art in general.

"Woman with an Umbrella" 1905

"Two Girls" 1941

"Outline of Notre-Dame at Night" 1902

"Luxury, peace and pleasure" 1904 Center Georges Pompidou, Paris

Drawings by Matisse

"Portrait of a woman" 1945

"Portrait of Ilya Ehrenburg"

"Portrait of a woman with flowing hair"

"Woman in Profile"

Henri Matisse

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Henri Matisse ( Henri Matisse) - an outstanding French artist, leader of the Fauvist movement - known for his masterful rendering of exquisite emotions and feelings in color. Matisse's world is a world of dances and pastorals, beautiful vases, juicy fruits, greenhouse plants, carpets and colorful fabrics, bronze figurines and endless landscapes. His style is distinguished by the flexibility of lines, sometimes intermittent, sometimes rounded, conveying a variety of silhouettes and outlines, moods and motifs. Refined artistic media, coloristic harmonies combining bright contrasting harmonies, as if calling on the viewer of these works to enjoy the sensual beauty of the world.

They say about Matisse's painting that it is musical. The artist’s art was often given the definitions of “secular” and “salon”, seeing in the festivity and elegance of his paintings a direct influence of the tastes of wealthy patrons of the arts. Reproached for being out of touch with reality, decadence, lack of understanding modern problems. Indeed, with rare exceptions, you will not see nondescript everyday motifs in his paintings. Henri tried to capture something completely different: elegant women in a beautiful elegant setting, lush bouquets of flowers, bright carpets.

The future artist came into the world, which would later be glorified by him with such love with the help of a brush and paints, just before the onset of the New Year - December 31, 1869 in Cateau-Cambresy, in northern France. The father wanted his son to get back on his feet as soon as possible, he saw him as a lawyer, a wealthy man, but his desires remained a dream. True, after graduating from the Lyceum Saint-Quentin, Matisse still had to study law in Paris. He first tried his hand at painting while in the hospital, where he suffered from appendicitis. There was a lot of free time, Henri made a drawing, another and... the work fascinated him. At the age of 20 he began training in art school Ventin de la Tour, and in 1891 he went to Paris, where he entered the School of Fine Arts. Then, against the will of his father, Matisse left jurisprudence and completely settled in Paris, entering the Julian Academy and taking lessons from the master of French painting, Gustave Moreau.

A mystic and symbolist, Moreau predicted a great future for the aspiring artist, especially appreciating his innovative techniques in unexpected color combinations. Painting takes time and money. The family is growing: at the turn of two centuries, the artist’s sons are born - Jean and Pierre. According to the memoirs of contemporaries, Matisse’s marriage was extremely happy: Amelie Matisse, devoted to the artist, worked hard so that her husband could only engage in creativity. This beautiful woman is depicted in many of the master’s paintings; the most famous works are “Woman with a Hat” and “Portrait of a Wife”. Amelie did everything possible to make Henri travel more, see the world, and absorb its colors. Together the couple travel to Algeria, where Matisse gets acquainted with the art of the East, which had a great influence on him. Hence, in his work - the predominance of color over form, variegation and patterning, stylization in the design of objects.

The search for a direct transfer of sensations using intense color, simplified drawing and flat images was reflected in the works presented at the Fauvist exhibition at the Paris Autumn Salon in 1905. At this time, Matisse discovered the sculpture of the peoples of Africa and became interested in classical Japanese woodcuts and decorative Arabic art.

In 1908, Russian collector Sergei Shchukin commissioned the artist to create three decorative panels for his own home in Moscow. The work “Dance” (1910) presents an ecstatic dance inspired by impressions of the Russian seasons of Sergei Diaghilev, the performances of Isadora Aunkan and Greek vase painting. In “Music” there are figures of artists playing various instruments. The third panel - “Bathing, or Meditation” - remains only in sketches. Paintings from the Shchukin collection, “cut off” by the war from the rest of the world, were confiscated by the state after the revolution, remained locked up in Soviet basements throughout the middle of the 20th century and saw the light of day only after the death of Stalin (and Matisse himself).

It cannot be said that the artistic beau monde received Matisse’s work unambiguously positively. For example, Pablo Picasso did not perceive the French painter at all and saw him as his rival. Igor Stravinsky recalls: “What is Matisse? - Pablo liked to repeat. “There’s a balcony, and there’s a bright flower pot on it.”

Unlike Picasso, Matisse had to face opposition from his father, who was ashamed all his life that his son decided to become an artist. For many years Matisse lived in poverty. He was about forty when he was finally able to support his family on his own. Henri sought in art the peace and stability that life could not give him; Pablo, on the contrary, undermined the foundations of the world.

When they met in 1906, Picasso was 25 years old, had just arrived from Spain, barely spoke French, and practically no one knew him in Paris. Three-year-old Matisse at that time was already recognized as a first-class artist. The first painting that Matisse gave to Picasso in 1907 was a portrait of Henri's daughter, Marguerite. Picasso hung the work in his studio and invited his friends to use it as a dartboard.

Matisse was strongly influenced by Islamic art, presented at an exhibition in Munich in 1911. The two winters the artist spent in Morocco (1912 and 1913) further enriched his knowledge of oriental motifs, and his long life on the Riviera contributed to the development of a vibrant palette. Unlike the masters of Cubism, Matisse’s work was not speculative; it was based on a scrupulous study of nature and the laws of painting. All these paintings, depicting female figures, still lifes and landscapes, are the result of a long study of natural forms. We can say that Matisse managed to harmoniously express the immediate emotional sensation of reality in the most strict artistic form. An excellent draftsman, he was primarily a colorist, achieving the effect of a coordinated sound of several intense colors. For example, in the painting “Luxury, Peace and Voluptuousness,” the Art Nouveau style is combined with the dotted style of painting characteristic of pointillism. Subsequently, color energy increases, interest in expression appears ( favorite word Matisse), colorful halos, coloristic elaboration within the pictorial composition.

The color impact of Matisse's paintings on the viewer is incredible; the colors cry out and shout like loud fanfares. Color contrasts are sharply highlighted and emphasized. Here is what the artist himself says: “In my painting “Music” the sky is painted in a beautiful blue color, the bluest of blues, the plane is painted with a color so saturated that the blue, the idea of ​​absolute blue, is fully revealed; Pure greenery was taken for the trees, and ringing cinnabar for human bodies. For expression depends on the color surface embraced by the viewer as a whole.”

In Matisse's works, color predominates so much over drawing that we can say: it is color that is the true hero of the content of the paintings. This creative method was characteristic not only of Matisse, but also of Fauvism in general. One critic wrote about the Fauves: “They threw a can of paint in the public’s face.” Matisse, in one of his essays, counters: “The colors in a painting should excite feelings to the very depths, no matter what the critics say.” No wonder Guillaume Apollinaire exclaimed: “If Matisse’s work needed comparison, one should take an orange. Matisse is a fruit of dazzling color.”

The accuracy with which he builds a composition on canvas is remarkable. Matisse grasps the very axis of movement, giving the drawing integrity and regularity. His sketches are so sharp, dynamic, lapidary and at the same time flexible that they cannot be confused with the works of other draftsmen - they are immediately recognizable!

French artists of the Art Nouveau era were partial to dance. Graceful ballerinas of Degas, prima cabaret of Toulouse-Lautrec - various incarnations of what has become fashionable dance theme. Henri Matisse was no exception. And although realism is alien to Matisse’s images, and his decorative canvases have little in common with a reliable depiction of ballerinas on pointe shoes, the theme of dance invariably arises at turning points in his creative path.

The panel “Parisian Dance” was conceived by Matisse in his declining years. However, the work is considered one of the most daring and innovative. Especially for this order, the author invented and developed original equipment- decoupage (translated from French as “cutting”). Like a giant puzzle, the picture was assembled from individual fragments. From sheets pre-painted with gouache, the maestro personally cut out figures and pieces of background with scissors, then, according to the drawing marked with charcoal, attached them to the base with pins... The “Parisian dance” is known in three versions. The earliest, unfinished version is essentially a preparatory sketch. With the second, almost completed work, an unfortunate story emerged: Matisse made a mistake in the size of the room, and the entire canvas had to be rewritten. The final version was approved by the client and successfully departed overseas. And the previous, “defective” artist managed to finish, in 1936 he gave the work for a modest remuneration to the Museum of Modern Art in Paris. Today, “Parisian Dance” is rightly considered the pearl of the collection of this museum - it is no coincidence that a special hall was built to display the giant canvas. Another interesting detail: in the process of working on “The Parisian Dance,” Henri Matisse had to visit Moscow, where, along with the poet Valery Bryusov and the artist Valentin Serov, who revealed to Matisse the beauty of Russian icons, from which the French painter was delighted, he met Lydia Aelektorskaya. This simple Russian girl was destined to go down in history - she became a secretary, then an indispensable assistant, and then the artist’s closest friend and last muse. In October 1933, Lydia Lelektorskaya moved into Matisse’s house and stayed there for almost 22 years.

Matisse wrote about his impressions of Russia: “Yesterday I saw a collection of old icons. This is true great art. I am in love with their touching simplicity, which is closer and dearer to me than the paintings of Fra Angelico. In these icons, like a mystical flower, the soul of the artists is revealed. And from them we need to learn to understand art.”

The First World War, which left a deep mark on Matisse’s soul, changed his artistic style. The coloring of the paintings becomes gloomy, and the drawing becomes almost schematic. Since 1918, the artist has lived almost constantly in Nice, occasionally visiting Paris. Joyful, bright colors will not return to his painting soon... In numerous compositions of this period, among which the most famous are “Persian Dress”, “Music” (1939), “Romanian Blouse” (1940), the artist again affirms the principles of “pure painting” " Painted with careless strokes, these paintings created a joyful but deceptive impression - as if they were painted easily, the first time, as a result of happy and carefree inspiration. But in fact, each of the master’s creations is the result of painstaking research, hard work, and enormous moral and physical stress. No different good health, suffering from insomnia, Matisse denied himself many pleasures just to maintain the ability to work. While creating a picture, he forgot about everything in the world.

The artist continues to create even in the most difficult times for him. Since 1941, he has been seriously ill, his wife and daughter were arrested by the Gestapo for participating in the Resistance movement, Matisse knows nothing about their fate for a long time. In recent years, Henri has been working more as an illustrator and is interested in collages. With what delight he painted the patterns of oriental carpets, how carefully he achieved precise, harmonious color relationships! His still lifes and portraits of late times are also magnificent, full of mysterious inner light. This is no longer an intimate painting, it takes on a cosmic sound. Forced to abandon oil painting, unable to hold a brush and palette in his hands, the artist developed a technique for composing an image from scraps of colored paper. In 1948-53, by order of the Dominican Order, Matisse worked on the construction and decoration of the “Chapel of the Rosary” in Vence. An openwork cross hovers above the ceramic roof depicting the sky with clouds; above the entrance to the chapel there is a ceramic panel depicting St. Dominic and the Virgin Mary. Other panels, executed according to the master’s sketches, are placed in the interior; the artist is extremely stingy with details, restless black, the lines dramatically tell the story of the Last Judgment (the western wall of the chapel); next to the altar is an image of Dominic himself. This last work of Matisse, to which he attached great importance, a synthesis of many previous quests, worthily completed his artistic path. However, Matisse painted until the last moment, even at night, even after a heart attack, the day before his death, November 3, 1954, he asked for a pencil and made three portrait sketches.

The artist, fortunately, had a long and intense creative life- in a world full of disasters, technical, scientific and social revolutions. This world was deafening, it was changing with truly explosive speed, and Matisse overturned all the usual ideas, piled up ruins, multiplied discoveries, and looked for new forms of being in art. I searched and found!

Biography

Henri Émile Benoit Matisse was born on the last day of 1869 in the town of Le Ca-teau-Cambresy in northeastern France into the family of a grain and paint merchant. Matisse's childhood was happy. Surely his mother played an important role in the boy’s fate - having an artistic nature, in addition to working in the family shop, she was engaged in making hats and painted porcelain.

After leaving school, Henri studied in Paris to become a lawyer. After graduating, he worked as a paralegal in St. Quentin. The work seemed endlessly boring to Matisse. The turning point in his life was illness. To somehow “dispel” her son when he was recovering from an operation for appendicitis, his mother gave him a box of paints. “When I started writing,” Matisse later recalled, “I felt like I was in heaven...”

Having obtained his father's permission, he went to study as an artist in the capital, where in October 1891 he entered the Julian Academy. Matisse’s relationship with Adolphe Bouguereau, whose workshop he ended up in, did not work out, and he soon moved to the School of Fine Arts under Postav Moreau. It was fate. Firstly, Moreau turned out to be an excellent teacher; secondly, here, in his studio, the aspiring artist became friends with Albert Marquet and Georges Rouault, his future comrades in Fauvism.

01 - Dining table, 1897

02 - Blue Pot and Lemon, 1897

03 - Fruit and coffeepot, 1899

On Moreau's advice, he diligently copied the works of the old masters in the Louvre. The ideas of the master, who believed that the main thing in a painter is his ability to express his attitude to the world in paint, found a lively response in the soul of the young Matisse. As for his style of writing at that time, it was close to impressionistic. But the color, muted at first, gradually gained strength and even then began to acquire independent meaning in the works of the artist, who saw in it “a force capable of emphasizing sensation.”

04 - Dishes on the table, 1900

05 - Crockery and fruit, 1901

06 - Outline of Notre-Dame at night, 1902

07 - Workshop in the attic, 1903

Matisse lived a difficult life at this time. He had an illegitimate daughter who required care. In 1898, the artist married Amelie Pereire. The newlyweds spent their honeymoon in London, where Matisse became interested in the work of the great master of color Turner. Upon returning to France, the couple left for Corsica (the amazing colors of the Mediterranean then burst onto the painter’s canvases). Henri and Amelie had two sons one after another. Matisse, who lacked funds, designed theater performances, and Amelie opened a hat shop. Around this time, Matisse met Seurat's most prominent follower, Paul Signac, and became interested in divisionism, the meaning of which was writing in separate dots of pure primary color. This passion made itself felt in a number of his works.

Henri Matisse was a leader of Fauvism and one of the key figures in 20th century art. Artistlived a very long life. He died in 1954. Picasso, having learned about the death of Matisse, exclaimed: “How am I going to work now?” The master meant that he creative path was a constant rivalry with Matisse, and with the death of Matisse, he seemed to lose the core of the rivalry.

Henri Matisse. At the beginning of your creative journey

Matisse began painting quite late. His parents wanted Henri to be a lawyer and he became one. But the future artist soon realized that jurisprudence was not his business, and went to Paris to study art. He considered Gustav Moreau to be his teacher, and, following his teacher’s advice, he studied the works of old masters and even copied them in the Louvre.

At this stage, he tried to write “in the spirit”, looking for artistic affinity with one or another direction in art. The collection of the Pushkin Museum contains a still life made “in the spirit of the Dutch.” In this work, Matisse made the glass of the bottle sparkle with an extraordinary color. This early work very similar in style to the style of Edouard Manet. (It is interesting that although many people classify Manet as an impressionist, he was not one. Experts always emphasize this by saying: “Edouard Manet and the Impressionists”).

Let's return to the early Matisse. The tone of his painting is dark and heterogeneous, individual colors are silvery pearlescent. Unlike Cezanne, Matisse sculpts and cares for the form in a completely different way. He pays more attention to color and builds the canvas according to classical canons. The painting was painted in 1896, when the artist was 39 years old.

At the very end of the 19th century, the artist became interested in bright colors, vibrant color combinations and bold compositional techniques.

By the late 1900s, he had developed a new understanding of the role of art in the modern world. The master believed that the task of modern painting is to create a harmonious environment for a tired, spiritually exhausted viewer, to distract him from worries and worries modern world and help you relax. Matisse valued the ideals of the unity of man and nature; he was attracted by the fusion of instinct and reason present in archaic cultures.
Matisse sought the purity of feelings characteristic of children's drawing or primitive art.

Fauvism by Matisse “Statue and Vases on an Oriental Carpet”

“A figurine and vases on an oriental carpet. (Still life of Venetian red)” 1908
In 1908, when Matisse created this painting, an exhibition of Oriental and Muslim art was held in Paris, which prohibits depicting the faces of people, as well as animals. In Islamic art, only ornaments and calligraphic inscriptions are acceptable. Matisse carefully studied oriental arts and drew a lot from them for his work.

In this still life Matisse denies all the canons of painting and uses very bright colors.

It must be borne in mind that the sense of color is given to a person by nature, just like a voice or an ear for music. It either exists or it doesn’t; it is impossible to develop a sense of color, just like to develop a voice. Matisse had a perfect sense of color. He didn’t have to invent anything, he knew everything for sure. And Matisse can be trusted in this.

The carpet in this picture is real. The same as Matisse had in his house. He threw this rug over the fireplace or chest of drawers or other furniture. But the master does not give the depth of space here in accordance with mathematical laws, but writes out the depth only with triangles of space not filled with the carpet. A vessel, a Japanese vase, a mug, a sculpture, its field, cognac. Colors – red, green, blue, black. Gives the corners of the room a different color. From the moment Matisse began to paint such compositions his development as an artist began.The freedom in the choice of colors and colors is clearly visible on the canvas - intense, almost flaming.

It seems that the objects on the carpet are included in the ornament of the covering, in an arabesque, as an element of an oriental pattern. The master also included a plaster model of his sculpture in this composition.

Matisse's Fauvism. “Fruit and Bronze”

In 1910 he created the canvas "Fruit and Bronze". This work was written for a Moscow collector, an admirer of his talent, Sergei Shchukin. Here, as in previous works, there is no chiaroscuro, perspective, or reflection.

Matisse does not use light and shadow modeling of objects; he marks them with colored spots and outlines them. Line and color are the main thing in his work. The shapes of objects are made with strokes different colors and all this is against the backdrop of a blue carpet.

Matisse's Fauvism. “Spanish woman with a tambourine”

This composition is one of the most stunning Fauvist paintings. The dancer's figure is drawn with a very dynamic colored outline and contrasts with the distribution of light and shade. It is innovatively unusual and “wildly” expressive. Background color is blue. A black blouse and a red skirt look very beautiful on a blue background. These are contrasting colors with which the artist creates the depth of space.

Henri Matisse and Sergei Shchukin. The very first “ideal” patron of Matisse, the person who accepted all his ideas, was the Moscow collector Sergei Shchukin. Matisse's paintings decorated the Shchukin mansion and formed a single ensemble.

Shchukin trusted Matisse completely. He entrusted Matisse to decorate his house in the style that the artist considered necessary and correct. Shchukin provided Matisse with the opportunity to express himself. The relationship between the patron and the artist was very trusting, full of mutual understanding. In a very short period before the revolution of 1917, Matisse painted a whole series of paintings for Shchukin, which currently form the pride of the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts. The famous panels “Music” and “Dance” - the latter work is in Zrmitazh - were also commissioned by Shchukin for his Moscow mansion.

Shchukin paid Matisse very generously. With this money, the artist was able to live for more than 7 years without worrying about anything.

The revolution of 1917 changed everything. Shchukin went into exile. Once, Sergei Shchukin was traveling by train to Nice. Matisse was also a passenger on this train and learned that his patron was traveling on the same flight. Matisse looked everywhere for Shchukin, wanted to greet and talk with the patron of the arts, but could not find him anywhere. They did not meet, although they were traveling on the same train. The whole point was that Matisse was looking for his patron in 1st class, and Shchukin was traveling in third.

In the exhibition of the next hall, the visitor is greeted by flowers and still lifes - these are Matisse’s favorite themes.

Matisse's Fauvism. “Flowers on a honey background”

A vase with a lush bouquet of flowers stands on the table. The white tabletop is actually a translucent, unpainted white canvas. So that all this does not merge with the white vase, the master draws its outline. The honey-yellow background of the canvas, unusually beautiful and warm, embraces a bouquet of flowers.

Matisse himself noted that modern people- This tired people. In this crazy world, we need to use art and its brightness to give people the opportunity to relax. Let them relax looking at such paintings - this was precisely Matisse’s goal.

Matisse attached great importance to harmony: “I want to bring people relaxation and joy.” In his paintings, the artist constantly implemented his life program.

Matisse's Fauvism. "Corsican landscape. Olives." 1898

Many of Matisse’s works, located in the Pushkin Museum, were donated by Lydia Nikolaevna Delectorskaya. Among her gifts are artist's palettes. In the collection of the Pushkin Museum there are many labels with her name - the name of the secretary Henri Matisse. And although Delectorskaya could present the collection of paintings to any other museum, she preferred Pushkin. Perhaps this was the merit of Irina Aleksandrovna Antonova (director of the Pushkin Museum), who managed to please Delectorskaya.

The Corsican landscape has purely impressionistic features. But Matisse’s strokes are much denser, and the colors are applied more intensely.

Matisse's palettes. The first one looks like flowers.

Delectorskaya’s portrait is also kept in the museum, it’s a small sketch, under glass. But the facial features have an undeniable portrait resemblance.

Two fairly large canvases in the collection are the interiors of the artist’s studio; there are three of them in the museum, but it is almost impossible to catch them on display at the same time. One canvas depicts a corner of the workshop, the other a pink workshop with a piece of his painting “Dance”. Mathis quotes himself in many of his paintings.

Henri Matisse “The Artist's Workshop. (Pink Workshop)”

This is one of Matisse's studios, with a so-called symphonic interior that embodies on canvas the harmony of color and composition.
Matisse includes in this composition his paintings on the walls of his studio and a bronze figurine.

In this picture it is good to trace how this composition was created. Artist connects different genres(still life and interior) with one arabesque ornament. In front of the screen is a chair with an empty vase and no flowers on it. Then there is a screen, a screen on which clothes are thrown. And the folds on these clothes seem to be stems of flowers, they seem to start from the vase and create an imitation of the flowers standing in it, and at the same time these folds form an arabesque ornament.

Then all this organically resonates with real flowers and trees outside the window. And this is the end of the arabesque theme. Color plays a very important role in this canvas. No other artist except Matisse had such a sense of color. There is a musical term. About a person who is very gifted musically they say that he has absolute pitch. And if we apply a musical term to fine art, then we must say about Matisse that he had an absolute eye.

This “Pink Studio” was painted when Matisse returned from Russia. With the money paid to him by Shchukin, the artist rented this studio, where he painted the picture, and he later bought the studio.

Henri Matisse “Workshop Corner”

“Workshop Corner”.

Matisse was very fond of blue draperies. Like a new, flowery melody. And daylight is conveyed in colors. And in the upper left corner of the canvas you can see the same pink striped walls of his workshop, which are depicted in the “Pink Workshop”.

“ Moroccan Triptych.” 1912-1913

Before Matisse came to Russia, he planned to visit Italy, where he wanted to study the works of the Old Masters. But, having seen Russian art, he realized that he would not find anything specific in Italy and went to Morocco. (Matisse saw icons in the Ostroukhov collection and the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.)

This triptych was commissioned from Matisse by Ivan Morozov.And, comparing Matisse’s still lifes, bouquets and workshops with this triptych, it seems that this is a completely different artist.

It is interesting that the frame of this painting was specially ordered and paid for by Morozov.
The entire triptych is presented as three different times of the day or as a philosophical perception of the East.

1 – Morning. And Matisse opens a window to the city. We see St. Peter's Cathedral, a fortress, two donkeys and an Arab riding on one of them.

The shadow still envelops the city with its freshness and coolness. Through an open window, Matisse shows a cityscape, which, in turn, is introduced through a still life. Still life window – city landscape.

2 – Day. The life of the spicy East moves inside the terraces and everything looks like a mirage. The girl depicted in the center of the canvas is the daughter of Zora, an employee of the Villa de France Hotel, who very often posed for Matisse.

Some time later they began to look for her, but she disappeared, dissolved and nothing is known about her. Matisse loved to paint her and repeatedly depicted her on his canvases.

3 – Evening. The heat in the city is unbearable and everyone expects the coolness of the night, and the Arab sitting in front of the entrance dissolves, disappears, like an image and a vision. The contours of his figure become barely visible.

Here is Matisse, who could do whatever he wanted in the field of color.

Henri Matisse “Blue Vase with Flowers on a Tablecloth”

“Arums, irises and mimosa (Blue vase with flowers on a blue tablecloth)” 1913. The painting was part of the ensemble of the Pink Living Room in the house of S.I. Shchukin, for which Matisse created several works of the same format, including “Red Fishes”. This bouquet in our exhibition is written in cold tones. “Arums...” - the understanding of the canvas comes from the oriental hieroglyph; curls are scattered throughout the background of the picture - elements of oriental ornament. The vase is covered with an emerald leaf of a flower.

Before Matisse, the combination of green and blue did not fit into the head and such a combination of colors was never used. And Matisse applied it and we saw how beautiful and harmonious it is.

Matisse's Fauvism. “Red fish”

“Red fishes”. The combination of bright, intense colors creates an inimitable decorative effect. The freedom, and even the sweeping nature of the drawing, enhances the impression that the picture was painted “in one sitting”, “in one breath”

The canvas is interpreted as something between a still life and a landscape. What is ingenious is always very simple, which is why very often amateurs say about Matisse’s work: “I’ll draw like that too.” Yes, you can draw. But to give such a combination of colors, objects, to offer such harmony in the canvas - it is unlikely that anyone else will succeed.

The canvas plays with a round shape. This is the table top, the bottom of the aquarium, the lid of the aquarium, the water in the aquarium. And into this grey-asphalt and green palette the artist weaves in red fish, the image of which doubles in their reflection on the surface. These fish attract all the attention, the gaze goes around the circle and returns to them again.

In this review we talked about almost all the paintings that are on display at the museum Fine Arts them. Pushkin in Moscow. It must be said that there were significantly more of them in S.I. Shchukin’s collection. The collection was divided between Moscow and Leningrad (as St. Petersburg was then called) and many paintings are now in the Hermitage collection.

Matisse died in 1954 at the age of 84. Pablo Picasso assessed his role in modern art briefly and simply: “Matisse was always the one and only.”