The 1930s marked a turning point in Henri Matisse's work. Despite his success, he got tired of his Nice interiors and languid nudes. As he grew older and more famous, he began to question himself: what he needed was something new, both in his themes and in his pictorial techniques...
The 1930s marked a turning point in Henri Matisse's work. Despite his success, he got tired of his Nice interiors and languid nudes. As he grew older and more famous, he began to question himself: what he needed was something new, both in his themes and in his pictorial techniques. Changing scale, he tackled La Danse, a vast mural composition destined for the Barnes Foundation in Merion, and thus made a fresh start, on the threshold of his sixtieth year.
Matisse's artistic activity was closely followed by the avant-garde magazine Cahiers d'art, launched by Christian Zervos in 1926.
At a time of intense research, the painter's work became radical and at the heart of the debates on ideas and artistic currents relayed by the Cahiers. It is through this prism that the present book aims to explore the production of Matisse in the 1930s, to give full scope to this rich creative period, during which the artist established himself as one of the major figures of international modernism.
Exhibition "Matisse. Cahiers d'art, le tournant des années 30" at the Musée de l'Orangerie from March 1 to May 29, 2023, then at the Musée Matisse, Nice from June 23, 2023 to September 24, 2023.
English language
256 pages / 170 illustrations
Co-published by Réunion des musées nationaux - Grand Palais / Musée d'Orsay
