Product Description
THIS EDITION IS INTENDED FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Presents the life and work of Henri Matisse in the form of a child's school report. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great Book!
This is such a wonderfull little book!I highly reccomend it for your kids, and art class, or just yourself!:)

Not really great
I think it was cute for parents of the child, but not really worth purchasing, I expectsd a graft project book. Waste of money.

Excellent concept, well executed
An amusing introduction to the artist Matisse that I highly recommend.Written as though it's an 8-yr-old's school report, it is accessible and very informative.It includes reproductions of Matisse art and biographical information.Loved it.And it was useful as a teaching tool.

Disappointed in Matisse Drawing with Scissors
Cute, but not as substantial as I would have liked. ... Read more

Product Description
Henri Matisse's adventures in color and light constitute a landmark in the history of modern art.From his apprenticeship in the studio of Gustave Moreau to the paper cutouts of the 1950's, the stages of his journey represent a triumph of artistic research and resolution.More than 300 reproductions grace this volume.The text provides a fascination survey of a complex life that crossed the paths of many legendary figures of the age. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

An exhuberantly colourful introduction
TASCHEN's "Basic Art" series consists of fairly inexpensive, full-colour introductions to dozens of painters running just under 100 pages each. Though these can be rather variable in quality, this installment dedicated to Henri Matisse is great. Matisse was a "Master of Color", as the book's subtitle goes, and his paintings here are in explosively gorgeous reproduction. The paintings appear in chronological order (not always a given with the "Basic Art" series), which allows the reader to understand at a glance Matisse's gradual stylistic evolution.

Volkmar Essers' text is quite informative. He splits Matisse's life and work into five periods, "In Quest of Pure Colour" 1869-1905, "Realism and Decoration" 1906-1916, "The Intimacy of the Nice Period" 1917-1928, "Beyond Spatial Limits" 1930-1940 and "Matisse's Second Life: an Art of Grace" 1941-1954. His comments on the paintings are insightful and never lost in navel-gazing, drawing the reader's eye to perhaps hitherto unnoticed nuances in the works. Extracts from Matisse's writings appear in the margins, so one can additionally read the painter's own feelings about his work.

The "Basic Art" books are meant to be only introductions, and thus their coverage is a bit superficial. I could complain that the canvases of Matisse's last period are given fairly little space here, but hey, the book has got me hooked on Matisse's painting and I'm going to move on to a more expansive look at his art anyway.

Concise Matisse
I had recently visited the chapel that Matisse designed for a convent in Vence, France (near Nice.)When I got home I couldn't find a book about it, so I ordered this brief look at Matisse and his art.It does have some of the chapel but it is mainly a valuable and very concise overview of his life and work, with some good pictures.

Beautiful.
One looks at the works of Matisse and wonders why there is no Noble Prize in Art.He would have been so deserving.The works printed in this book are dazzling in their colors, shapes, lines and proportions.His work will be viewed for many, many years as the masterpieces of a tremendously creative man.

Cursory text, fabulous illustrations.
the problem with series that attempt to impose an accessible beginners' format on art and artists is that these things rarely conform to method.the Taschen introductions to great artists are all 96 pages long, dividing the artist's life into significant chronological chapters, following strict biography, and using key paintings to illustrate various points made.this is fine in practice, we've all got to start somewhere, and the series is noted for its refusal to talk down to the reader, its clarity of interpretation, and the bounteous range of miraculously mounted, full-colour reproductions, not just of paintings, but line drawings, lithographs, sketches, studies, woodcuts etc.

The obvious difficulty is not that artists are transcendent and wayward figures who won't fit into a neat grid, but that some artists lived to be considerably older than others.the first book in this series I read was Anna Meseure's 'Auguste Macke', the study of a painter who died when he was only 27.Meseure was able to elaborate each development in Macke's work in detail, and to give a proper treatment of biographical background and its influence on the art, if only on the level of subject matter.

Macke, however, remains a marginal figure.henri Matisse is one of the towering geniuses of 20th century culture.He lived, and painted masterpieces, until he was 85; his life spanned two cataclysmic World Wars, a riot of social and political changes, and almost every aesthetic revolution worth talking about in the last 150 years.given the same amount of space to discuss Matisse as Meseure had with a painter a third his age, Essers' study can't help being a cursory skim, with few revelatory anecdotes (we only learn in the chronology about Matisse's pilgrimmage to the aging Renoir; his theatre designs for Stravinsky; or the visit of Aragon to his sickbed during World War Two - such episodes are surely as important as some given prominence in the book), or, worse, few intimations of the blinding raptures that must have seized Matisse at each new artistic discovery and breakthrough.We learn very little about his relation to his cultural milieu, his tacit rivalry with Picasso, or his overall importance in the history of art; discussion of the work is apolitically formalist.Uncomfortable questions - the obsessiveness of his early year despite his family's poverty; his apoliticism during World War Two - are skimmed over.

None of this really matters.Matisse's work travels surprisingly well in reproduction, especially the later works involving cut-outs, simplified forms and bold colours.the colours throughout are done full bright justice to, so dazzling in fact that reading this book for more than an hour gave me a headache.The rich mix of classics ('Woman with the Hat', 'La Dance', 'Jazz') with the revelatory, less well-known (including spare, geometric, near-abstract views of Notre Dame during World War One) allow us to write our own story of this shamanic artist, whose patrician, Freudian mien concealed the colours and curves of a blazing and boundless inner life. ... Read more

Product Description
A perfect facsimile of Jazz, a 20th century masterpiece



This two-volume edition includes a perfect facsimile of Matisse's seminal cut-out work: Jazz. At last, readers can experience Jazz as if holding the 1947 original.



The reputation of Henri Matisse (1869 1954) as the most important artist of the modern era is rivaled only by Picasso who himself said, All things considered, there is only Matisse. Towards the end of his monumental career as a painter, sculptor, and lithographer, an elderly, sickly Matisse was unable to stand and use a paintbrush. So at almost 80 years of age, he developed a new technique: he drew shapes on colored paper, cut them out and pasted them together. These gouaches decoupees (gouache cut-outs) represented a revolution in modern art, yet their simplicity was dismissed by many critics as the folly of a senile old man. Later critics realized that Matisse had found a brilliant solution to the age-old conflict between line and color one that would profoundly influence generations of artists to come.



Printed in exactly the same colors, using paper and inks similar to the 1947 edition, the facsimile volume allows readers to experience Jazz in its original, unbound form.

* Printed in 18 colors on a small offset press, 4 pages at a time, to obtain the highest fidelity to the original

* Printed on Old Mill in 190 g/m² from Italian paper mill Fedrigoni. This paper is of archival quality and has a felt-like softness, much like handmade paper

* As with the original, this reprint is unbound and folded in signatures of 4 pages. It is protected by a French folded jacket and a hard-backed cover



The second volume provides a thorough historical context to Matisse's cut-outs, tracing their genesis in his 1930 trip to Tahiti, through to his final years in Nice. Also included are other pivotal works from his later career, including his contributions to Verve magazine and his exquisite decoration of the Vence Chapel. Includes rare and historic photographs by Matisse taken in Tahiti, as well as photos of Matisse by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Brassai, and the filmmaker Murnau. The text is supplemented by quotations from Matisse, Picasso, E. Teriade (the publisher of Jazz and Verve), the poets Louis Aragon, Henri Michaux, and Pierre Reverdy, and Matisse s son-in-law, Georges Duthuit. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

matisse - cut-outs
This is a glorious book on a glorious artist. If you want to know about Matisse you'll need a lot of space on your bookshelf, but for his cut-outs these two volumes will do. They cover this aspect of Matisse's art completely and satisfactorily. The reprint of Jazz is done in a way M would have approved: large size (you could show each print individually framed on the wall), bright colours, the appropriate paper. And the other volume will lead you into the amazing paper world that M created in his last years. If you take the time to read the text you will end up an expert on the subject. Jaap Ferwerda

Bright!
This is what we all did as a little kid. Cutting out little figures with scissors (stay between the lines!!!) and glueing them on another paper. But Henri Matisse brings this to other dimensions: enormous "paintings" with the most intense colours. We thought that indeed the brightness of the colours is the most tremendous and special "asset" of this book. No need to go to France to visit the Matisse-museum; open this book and you're already there!

Superb, hefty volumes about Matisse cutouts
This set is hefty, heavy, expensive and superbly printed. The "Jazz" volume consists of unbound leaves which include the cutouts and Matisse's hand writing in French. This section would need to be examined in a flat surface. The cutouts are justly renowned and are lyrical, musical, intensely colorful and a joy to behold.

I found the second, more substantial, volume more interesting. As in "Jazz", it vividly reproduces Matisse's cutouts on high quality paper and in spectacular color. There are a number of fold outs of the art works.There are many high quality documentary photographs (a number by the artist), of Matisse on his Tahitian travels and at work in France. Despite the age of some of the photos, they are in very realistic color.

There are a quantity of interesting articles concerning Matisse's cutout oeuvre as well as a translation of the writing in "Jazz". This is a grand publication; Taschen needs to be applauded for the exceptional standard of its printing. Despite its seeming expense, I regard the present Amazon price as representing fair value.

Gouache Genius
Wheelchair-bound for the significant portion of his days, Henri Matisse, the "wild beast" of color and leader of Les Fauves, in his seventies and eighties, had largely stopped painting. Though this is not to say that he was not creating art; in fact, it was one of his most prolific and controversial periods of productivity. Instead of painting, Matisse was cutting out pieces of colored paper and gluing the cut-outs together to create deceptively simple collages of pure form and color. He referred to this as "painting with scissors," and named the technique "gouaches découpés."

Though the technique was akin to the type of art that school-children create, it was nonetheless important or controversial. His work of the time (which was on a very large scale, more often than not wall-sized collages) was oft met with harsh criticism or complete dismissal of any artistic merit, being taken as nothing more than the last putterings of an aging artist. Though, there were those who could still see the great Matisse sense of style come through in the works, and in 1947, at nearly 80 years old, he published a compendium of prints of his paper cut-outs, along with his thoughts concerning them, called "Jazz."

Taschen's //Henri Matisse: Cut-Outs - Drawing With Scissors// by Gilles Néret, Xavier-Gilles Néret, and Henri Matisse is a big and beautiful double-hardcover collection of Matisse's paper cut-outs. The red book, //Cut-Outs//, is a documentation of the history surrounding this period of creation by Matisse. It reveals the back-story in depth and detail, and offers insight into Matisse's life and though process from an outside, and analytical perspective.The blue book, //Jazz//, is a facsimile of Matisse's original, and highly original, publication of the same name. It is the finest representation of //Jazz// that there is, save for having access to an actual copy from Matisse's print-run.

//Cut-Outs// documents Matisse's later life, beginning with his travel to Tahiti, going through his variety of medical troubles, and fading out with analysis of and thoughts on, both by Matisse himself, and not, his work. Peppered throughout are prints, including centerfolds, of his paper cut-out work in all of its diversity. There are also intimate photographs of Matisse living and working, the most powerful of which show him in his home surrounded by his favorite artwork, offering a glimpse into what he drew his inspiration from.

//Jazz// opens up to be an unbound folder with unbound pages, paying homage to the format of the original. Though the touch is nice in a manner that stays true to the artist and author of //Jazz//, it can make the book rather cumbersome to handle, even when taking it out of the slip case the first time, and, thus, a bit more taxing to read, seeing as one has to make an effort to do something about the order and organization of the pages. However, this becomes less than a minor annoyance, especially when the possible ideas behind it become more apparent. Jazz, the musical genre, is spontaneous and free, and the art in //Jazz//, the cut-outs, share obvious earmarks of those traits, and, therefore, it makes sense that the pages are not bound in a particular order, to be viewed in only one way. Rather, the content of //Jazz// is left to be arranged, or not, in a manner that is pleasing to the viewer, much like the strips of paper that Matisse created his Cut-Outs from were arranged, making the book itself an intrinsic extension of Matisse's art, as opposed to a binding that simply contains it. //Jazz// is a paper cut-out just as much as the gouaches découpés within. The content of the pages of //Jazz// consists of prints of some of the best of Matisse's cut-outs, as well as his hand-written thoughts and doodles concerning them. And, while, in the cut-outs, it is apparent that his technical skill, the level of craftsmanship, and dexterity had degraded in his late age, it is also still clear that he had a masterful eye and mind for composition, form, and color. The technicality, the craft, takes a back seat to the creativity, the art, and the art has not degraded in the least, and has in fact only expanded, progressed, and continued to manifest. Matisse's creativity obviously stayed with him, and sprang from him, until death.

// Henri Matisse: Cut-Outs - Drawing With Scissors// is an inspirational and ever-relevant volume about an inspirational and ever-relevant artist.

Reviewed by Jordan Dacayanan

Love Matisse? Buy this RIGHT AWAY!
This is spectacular! Matisse JAZZ is an exacting replica that aims to reproduce the feeling of holding an original 1948 printing of his last great body of work. As an old man, Henri Matisse was too arthritic to hold paint brushes but could still push scissors through paper and indicate to his assistants where they should be glued down. This folio is such a close reproduction as to show the texture of the construction paper that he cut up,the subtle pencil marks he made, the variations of intensity in color from the gouache on paper. Even if you know this series well from other books, you'll be delighted with the immediacy of holding these.
The commentary, in his own hand, looks like the ink had just dried on the paper. The (reproductions of the original) Lithographs are NOT STITCHED or stapled but folded into a folio and are ready for framing. The book Matisse CUT-OUTS replicates the six monographs that were published during Matisse's lifetime about his work with paper. There are many photographs, sharply and clearly reproduced. This is a handsome volume that will bring many years of great enjoyment.
I've never insisted that anyone looking at my books wash their hands before handling them. This is and exception because it is exceptional- a true heirloom edition of a great body of work. Buy it while you can. ... Read more

Product Description
“If my story were ever to be written down truthfully from start to finish, it would amaze everyone,” wrote Henri Matisse.It is hard to believe today that Matisse, whose exhibitions draw huge crowds worldwide, was once almost universally reviled and ridiculed. His response was neither to protest nor to retreat; he simply pushed on from one innovation to the next, and left the world to draw its own conclusions.Unfortunately, these were generally false and often damaging. Throughout his life and afterward people fantasized about his models and circulated baseless fabrications about his private life.

Fifty years after his death, Matisse the Master (the second half of the biography that began with the acclaimed The Unknown Matisse) shows us the painter as he saw himself. With unprecedented and unrestricted access to his voluminous family correspondence, and other new material in private archives, Hilary Spurling documents a lifetime of desperation and self-doubt exacerbated by Matisse’s attempts to counteract the violence and disruption of the twentieth century in paintings that now seem effortlessly serene, radiant, and stable.
Here for the first time is the truth about Matisse’s models, especially two Russians: his pupil Olga Meerson and the extraordinary Lydia Delectorskaya, who became his studio manager, secretary, and companion in the last two decades of his life.
But every woman who played an important part in Matisse’s life was remarkable in her own right, not least his beloved daughter Marguerite, whose honesty and courage surmounted all ordeals, including interrogation and torture by the Gestapo in the Second World War.

If you have ever wondered how anyone with such a tame public image as Matisse could have painted such rich, powerful, mysteriously moving pictures, let alone produced the radical cut-paper and stained-glass inventions of his last years, here is the answer.They were made by the real Matisse, whose true story has been written down at last from start to finish by his first biographer, Hilary Spurling.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Art as Obsession: The Master Behind the Masterpieces
In the second volume of her unmatched biography of Matisse, Spurling completes the archetypal story of The Artist. As clearly as one could desire, she portrays a man to whom everyone and everything in life was subordinated to Work. It is a vivid picture of how subservience to an inner urge, a personality-dominant characteristic, can allow a man, in desperate need of family, friends,colleagues, art-community support and recognition, can turn these into instruments of achievement, as measured by what they mean for accomplishment of his own objectives. It is likely that many of us would deny respect to the businessman, the politician, the journalist, who acted in such manner, but the Artist (at least, not when personally related to us ) is generally respected for his commitment. In Matisse's case, Spurling shows how he did care for others, do his best to advance them in their personal and professional lives, but, at rock bottom, was prepared to sacrifice their interests, their well-being, to his gift. I used the word obsessed because their is every evidence that Matisse, as was Picasso, the other recognized Giant of his era in French Art, could no help himself.
Aside from this fascinating aspects of his life, Spurling explores, better than has been done previously, his relationship to the major figures and many of the minor ones, in his life. She also explores the life circumstances from which emerged the various notable patterns in his work, in particular, she details the deteriorating health situation from which came some of the most striking visual imagery of the twentieth century.
There is much else to be found in this second volume of a set prerequisite to understanding the life and work of Matisse. Certainly, this book is among the "must reads" for any amateur (or professional) student of Modern Art.

Astonishing
As with the other reviewers, I was captivated by this book, and its predecessor.It now can stand beside John Richardson's monumental Picasso (still unfinished).Perhaps the most astonishing thing is the women who formed his total long-suffering support group.My only disappointment with the book is that one is desperate to find out about the afterlives of his wife, Olga Meerson, and Lydia Delectorskaya.(Sequel?)

Of course the other problem is that one comes away still not knowing what Matisse thought he was up to.He is still a complete mystery: what was it that drove him so much, and kept him in such agony?What was he looking for in his art?Everything he says about it is hardly helpful.

Very Well Written Biography
I read both of the biographies written by Spurling on Matisse.I felt that the first one, The Unknown Matisse, was the weakest of the two (but still very much worth reading).Some photo captions were confusing and this first book could have been edited down a bit.We really don't need to know about realtatives of realtives, etc.The second book, Matisse the Master, is excellent.Both seem to be well documented and reader-friendly (without the mystique and jargin that you sometimes find in these books, especially if written by pompus art historians or academic types).The plates of Matisse's works are good but there really should have been a second set of plates in the second book.Major pieces were discussed with no photographs, leaving the reader to seek out images from other sources.Both books together offer a Matisse biography that gives an intersting, thorough, and balanced presentation of the artist, his personal demons, the historical context, family members and their interactions, Matisse's creative understandings and struggles, his interaction with other artists and historical figure, etc.If you like Matisse's work, the two books are well worth the modest price and investment in time to absorb 800 pages of material!

An Artist's Artist
Matisse is considered by many to be one of the most prominent artists of the 20th century, with Picasso being the other. Cezanne, of course, was the spiritual father of them both. The problem with Matisse was that he was so devoted to his art that it was almost as a mistress to him, to the detriment of his marriage and family and nearly all other relationships.

Matisse went his own artistic way and did exactly what he wanted regardless of what his family or the public thought. He was sometimes considered a Fauvist (colors reigning supreme) and sometimes an abstractionist, but never realistic and traditional. His art was seen during his lifetime as shameless, unrealistic, existentialistic, and simple in a child-like way, erotic, lewd, and many other things. People are less shocked by it today since it is seen in the context of anything-goes late 20th century and early 21st century work; his so-called sexy odalisques, for example, are mild by today's standards. He was seen as a decorative light-weight in comparison to Picasso, who did more energetic and masculine work. Helen Spurling thinks the disappearance of so much of Matisse's work from the public eye diminishes his true status as a great artist; some of his work went to Russia via his Russian patron and was retained there unseen because of the Cold War. Picasso and Matisse, by the way, became close friends towards the end of his life. He was almost like an elder brother to Picasso and in a certain sense they had an exclusive club based on their art which no one else could understand.

I've always liked Matisse and have seen the great Cone Collection of his works at the Baltimore Museum many times. I confess not totally understanding what he was trying to do in simplifying the shapes and colors and flattening the depth of so many of his works. I'm starting to see that he was an artist's artist, unconcerned whether the public understands him or not.I guess that's OK, but he suffered severe criticism most of his life because of it. He was almost admirable, like a monk totally disciplined for his god, Art. The women in his life made his life as an artist possible. His wife Amelie and daughter Margo took care of all the details outside of his work and a Russian model named Lydia did so towards the end of his life. Unfortunately, Amelie thought (incorrectly per the book) that Margo and Henri were lovers and that broke up the marriage after WWII.

Hilary Spurling does a good job of condensing and making sense of the massive correspondence of Matisse and his family. My only complaint is that it could have been more condensed. It felt a little too much like a daily log in certain places. I'm sure she was trying to finally give the master his due.

More than history of art
Superb!Not only one of the best biographies I've read, it get's into the mind of the artist.This is not an easy thing to do.I read it as I would a novel, it was very hard to put down. ... Read more

Book Description
These handsomely illustrated volumes offer insight into the lives and works of those few unique individuals whose extraordinary creative genius has affected suceeding generations of artists and altered the way we view the world around us.

This volume details the legacy of Matisse to twentieth century art. He excelled at producing seductive bright colors and expressing the poetry of the human figure with a mere essence of line and shape. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

good buy
The quality is outstanding for a book this price.
Well illustrated and the color is excellent.A good book
to get you into Matisse. ... Read more

Product Description
Lavishly produced in oversize format, here is the complete illustrated catalogue of a landmark new exhibition devoted to the artist--the largest ever assembled--to be held at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, from September through January. Includes biographical notes, a chronology, and introductions to each major period of Matisse's career. 320 colorplates reproduce every painting and cutout in the exhibition; 92 black-and-white plates illustrate the sculptures, drawings, and prints; and 180 illustrations show related works not in the exhibition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

this is a book that I have used for several years
Matisse is an artist that will grow with you. I often return to this or other Matisse books and find ways of seeing painting that I have never contemplated before. What's nice about this Retrospective is that it does a first rate job of covering the artists entire life in detail.

When I first got this book, I skipped over most of the writing and just soaked in the pictures (The quality of reproductions here is very well done). What will engage you in the long run are the thousands of notes that the compilers have used to compliment the pictures. Most of these notes I myself do not find of interest, though they are helpful if you would like to know of his personal life. But a percentage of these deal with the paintings and how they were created. For myself, it was illuminating to see photo documentation of Matisses work as it was transformed over time.

This is not a book that will help you gain access to the deeper/scholarly realms of Matisse. I would have loved to have had the compilers here introduce every drawing and print that the artist had completed over his life. Most of the secondary work of Matisse is not to be found here. On the other hand, I don't think that most people would be interested in seeing sketch book work.

If you like Matisse and want the book that does the best job of introducing the artist, this is the one to get.

An essential sourcebook
This oversized volume documents a retrospective exhibition devoted to Matisse which was held at the Museum of Modern Art in late 1992 and early 1993.The largest Matisse exhibition ever staged, it is unlikely that thismassive curatorial event will ever be repeated.For devotees of Matisse,this book is an essential addition to your library, although there islittle here that has not been previously published and discussed many timesin earlier exhibitions.I think this book is more useful for thoseindividuals who have just been introduced to this artist's work - it is amarvelous one-volume survey, clearly organized into seven chronologicalsections covering the entirety of Matisse's life, and showcasing his finestpictures.For those readers looking for more than just reproductions,however, the book is less satisfying.Elderfield's introductory essay isvirtually incomprehensible for anyone who isn't already familiar with thematisse literature, and is poorly coordinated with the catalogue itself -there is no discussion of the individual paintings actually in theexhibition, or their interrelationships.The chronology of the artist'slife is useful, but no more than bare bones history.This book is chieflya visual pleasure and a fine document of a great exhibition.However,having seen the exhibition myself, I must inform the reader that many ofthe photographs in the book were received from non-MOMA sources, and thereare variations in quality among the images.The bulk of the reproductionsare just too dark, lending Matisse's pictures a muddy look that they do notpossess in reality.I wish someone had bothered to compare the photos tothe paintings before they sent the book to press.Still, if you buy onlyone book on Matisse, this should be it.

Covers all aspects of Matisse and his works!
This book goes through all of his different periods in his life; including many full-color plates which display the pictures described in the text. Definately a must have! ... Read more

Product Description
Discusses the life and work of French post-impressionist artist Henri Matisse. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

education
This is an excellent learning tool for primary school children.I am adding it to my collection of other artists that they offer.

Great series
I bought all of the books in this series for our homeschool art curriculum.They are easy to read and a fun supplement that can lead to a nice trip to the Smithsonian Gallery of Art.

Outstanding Series
Mike Venezia makes famous artists come to life.I have used these books in my reading class and have inspired reluctant readers to read non-fiction.Ages 6-11enjoy the lively language and great reproductions.

Well thought out...
I was really impressed with not only how wonderfully the book related to children, but to the colorful art work as well.My son asked lots of questions and related this book to his life. ... Read more

Product Description
Discusses the life of the French painter and makes observations about his work. ... Read more

Product Description
In 1936, French publisher Christian Zervos released a collection of drawings by Henri Matisse as part of his Cahiers d'Art series. Along with 39 stunning Matisse drawings, the book included a preface by Zervos and a poem by Tristan Tzara dedicated to the artist. The drawings, mostly of women—nudes, portraits, interior scenes—express an extraordinary sensuality.

This reprint, a facsimile edition faithful to the original, features translations by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and scholar Richard Howard. The beauty of Matisse's simple drawings, as powerful today as in 1936, remains accessible to art lovers and a general audience alike. 39 full-page facsimile reproductions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

magic lines
marvellous to study how Matisse creates a complete mood and pesonality with a few carefully (or perhaps quickly) drawn clear lines.Total magic.

Real Women
How does a man create, on paper, with a few simple pencil strokes, a whole human being? The women in this collection are erotically beautiful creatures, to be sure, but they are more than that. They are people, individuals, women one could know. Extraordinary! ... Read more

Product Description
An indispensable work of reference about this lodestar of modern art...

The extraordinary significance of the painter and sculptor Henri Matisse in the history of modern art, but also his influence, was no less decisive than that of his main rival, PabloPicasso. In fact, Matisse’s stylistic liberation actually goes one step further in the pursuit of his own personal goal — the perfect synthesis of line and color — by which he sought revolutionary approaches to the great tradition of French painting by drawing upon its classical aspects. For those who wish to know more about this lodestar of modern art and follow the adventurous path of his creative career, this publication is surely the most comprehensive and informative source available. Lavishly illustrated, its authoritative commentaries trace the artist’s search for balance, purityand serenity, from the chromatic brilliance of his Fauve period, through his travels, the Orient, geometric synthesis (it was he who introduced Picasso to African art by givinghim his first mask), and the odalisques to the final triumph when, at the age of eighty, he invented his gouache cut-outs that culminated in his illustrations for Jazz and allowed him to achieve his goal of sculpting in paint just as a sculptor works in stone. Matisse is widely acknowledged as an artist whose canvases are extremely difficult to reproduce in print. With this in mind, each work presented here has been painstakingly compared with the respective original, in close collaboration with the artist’s grandson, Claude Duthuit. The bard of color deserves no less. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Matisse
Pretty good book.I used it for an essay at school and it provided some valuable information and was my primary source.I thought it was a little quote heavy, as half the book is quotes from Matisse or art critics.Some are valuable, but others are just useless fluff.For example, in the begining there is a page long paragraph devoted to why everyone called Matisse a "doctor" and a hedonist or something.It bears no significance to what Matisse did.

I also wish that the book would have talked more extensively about his impact and effects on art.The book says some but the information isn't really centralized and its sort of here and there throughout the book.I wish there would have been a couple pages at the end or something about it.

Otherwise there is a lot of pictures and they're all real good quality.Also had pretty good analysis of some of his paintings, like their meanings and compositional elements that make it great etc... It also covers his entire life, before Fauvism to paper collages.I recommend it.

A good book with accurate color
This is a wonderful book. The color seems very accurate. There are many artbooks with inaccurate color reproduced.I compared several photos in this book with the real Matisse's paintings, the color is all accurate. ... Read more

Product Description
Discusses the life and career of this French artist, describing and giving examples of his work. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Henry Matisse: a quick acquaintance
This was a great book for fast research I wanted to do, and had no time for more complicated books. It can be read by both children and adults.
There are many photos, paintings, chronological charts and quotations by the great artist. It's very well organized and cohesive.
I recommend this book for everyone. ... Read more

Product Description
Who hasn't had the fanthasy of leaving his or her old life behind to start over? What would happen if you gave up your job, city, state, and routine to move to another part of the world? Critically acclaimed writer and aspiring painter James Morgan does just that. Risking everything, he and his wife shed their old, settled life in a lovingly restored house in Little Rock, Arkansas, to travel in the footsteps of Morgan's hero, the painter Henri Matisse, and to find inspiration in Matisse's fierce struggle to live the life he knew he had to live. Part memoir, part travelogue, and part biography of Matisse, Chasing Matisse proves that you don't have to be wealthy to live the life you want; you just have to want it enough.

Morgan's riveting journey of self-discovery takes him, and us, from the earthy, brooding Picardy of Matisse's youth all the way to the luminous Nice of the painter's final years. In between, Morgan confronts, with the notebook of a journalist and the sketchpad of an artist, the places that Matisse himself saw and painted: bustling, romantic Paris; windswept Belle-île off the Brittany coast; Corsica, with its blazing southern light; the Pyrénees village of Collouire, where color became explosive in Matisse's hands; exotic Morocco, land of the secret interior life; and across the sybaritic French Riviera to spiritual Vence and the hillside Villa Le Rêve -- the Dream -- where the mature artist created so many of his masterpieces.

A journey from darkness to light, Chasing Matisse shows us how we can learn to see ourselves, others, and the world with fresh eyes. We look with Morgan out of some of the same windows through which Matisse himself found his subjects and take great heart from Matisse's indomitable, life-affirming spirit. For Matisse, living was an art, and he never stopped striving, never stopped creating, never stopped growing, never stopped reinventing himself. "The artist," he said, "must look at everything as though he were seeing it for the first time." That's the inspiring message of renewal that comes through on every page of Chasing Matisse. Funny, sad, and defiantly hopeful, this is a book that restores our faith in the possibility of dreams. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (19)

Gratitude to James Morgan for following his dream
James Morgan got me on the first page, and then I was hooked.I am grateful to him for his honesty and insightful writing style, for Matisse, and for France.As an artist, I understand his desires, frustrations and passion for art.I didn't want to finish the book because I would have to say good-bye to him and his wife, Beth.I am leaving for France in a few days, sketchbook in hand, and will trapse around Paris looking for Matisses' color, his abstraction, and his spirituality.Thank you, Mr. Morgan, for following your dream.I look forward to your next adventure.(A map of France would have been very helpful to orient oneself on his travels.Daphne

Chasing Matisse - A Winning Combination
Tourism and Art are a winning combination. Why not. Many of the great galleries and museums of the world are not co-incidentally located in many of the great cities of the world. Travel almost always broadens the mind and Art has never done anything to narrow it. It's noted that some of the earliest forms of tourism were for religious pilgrimage - a need to meet with the source of one's spiritual connection.

In 'Chasing Matisse' author James Morgan steps into the shoes and looks through the eyes of modern Art's number two (or is it number one) apostle, Henri Matisse. Mr. Morgan sets himself twelve months in France (including Morocco) to track down locations, dwellings, studios, ambiances and even individuals that bring Matisse the person (not the legend) back to life. Apart from 'enjoying' the delights of a mid-life rennaissance, the author has a promethean bent to borrow artistic fire from his hero. There's a not too eerie feeling of Matisse's ghost hovering over Mr Morgan's shoulder when he creates his own artwork (while living in 'Villa Le Reve' - Matisse's war-time home and studio).

Matisse aficionados will not be let down. Seemingly lightweight, this postcard from the post-Matissean world is the perfect complement to many publications about the artist (as well as one of the most endearing) to have been published over the last decade. It's as if the author has inadvertently created a new form of subjectivity with which to analyse the life and work of Matisse. Like a traveller making their way through a foreign land, we correlate that the story of the great 'fauves' struggle and eventual success, was anything but hedonistic.

Accompanied by his wife, James Morgan's travels and meetings in 'Chasing Matisse' are buoyant, joyously observed and an honest and accessible delight for Francophiles, intrepid arm-chair travelers and Matisse lovers everywhere.

Chasing Matisse
Chasing Matisse: A Year in France Living My Dream

What a load of pretentious nonsense! The author combines samples of his own work (which are child-like), a poor travelogue of France and a brief, dry biography of a great painter (with few original insights) in an offering that had me bored from page one. He asks for sympathy for his financially 'risk-taking' venture whilst telling us of his efforts to sell his house (at $79,000 under value) and fly his children over to France to celebrate Christmas whilst regailing us with descriptions of the expensive meals and swish hotels he stays in. We don't need the constant admiring prose for Henri's work - it speaks for itself.

A book that befriends the artist in all of us
This is a book I'm sure I'll reread many times. The author combines humor with depth, and the sense of adventure is inspiring. Right now I'm smiling, just remembering how pleasurable it was to read this book. author (unrelated to me) really did his research, too; I'm now thinking about Arnheim and Elins with renewed interest -- and I'll pursue some of the other books about Matisse as well.

The beauty of Art and fun of travel all in one...
Here I am trapped in a dull grey/brown Northeast winter when I picked up this book and went on a great trip!As an artist I really loved Mr. Morgan's passion for Matisse, for art in general and I loved his sketches!As a traveler who never gets to travel enough I loved the journey he took me on through France.As a matter of fact I'm so inspired that I'm heading to France this June and I'm going to take another long look at Matisse!So if you love art...this is a terrific book, if you love travel...this is a terrific book.If you love both then you're a terrific person who will really enjoy this book! ... Read more

Product Description
Henri Matisse: Drawings with Scissors Masterpieces from the Late YearsOlivier Berggruen and Max Hollein

Now in an attractively priced flexi-cover edition, this lavishly illustrated volume presents all aspects of Matisse's cutouts.

Henri Matisse’s paintings and drawings are some of the most revered in the art world and his cutouts are widely believed to represent the zenith of his artistic career. When Jazz, Matisse’s revolutionary handmade book of paper cutouts, was published in the early 1940s, it was considered a dramatic departure for the artist. Eventually he came to consider the cutout as his primary artistic medium. This collection of superb reproductions and critical essays offers a chance to appreciate the full spectrum of Matisse's work, from the early models for Jazz to the large-scale works that dominated the artist's final creative period, and offers fascinating new discoveries about the connections between the cutouts and his earliest works.

Max Hollein is Director of the Schirn Kunsthalle Museum in Frankfurt, Germany.

Olivier Berggruen is an art historian, who lives in New York. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A compilation of learned essays on the work of the great artist after age-related illness
Compiled and co-edited by art historians Oliver Berggruen and Max Hollein, Henri Matisse: Drawing With Scissors, Masterpieces From The Late Years is a compilation of learned essays on the work of the great artist after age-related illness, which confining him either to his bed or a wheel chair, would no longer permit him to paint, so Mattise took up cutting out colored paper patterns and having his assistants mount them in special patterns under his guidance (often from his wheel chair). The profusely illustrated essays include "Jazz: Rhythm and Meaning (Margret Stuffmann); "Painting with Scissors: Jazz and Verve" (Michael Anthonioz); "Drafts for Publications and Maquettes" (Ingrid Pfeiffer); "Decoration beyond Decoration" (Remi Labrusse); "Resonance and Depth in Matisse's Paper Cut-Outs" (Olivier Berggruen); "The Windows in the Chapel of the Rosary in Vence" (Ingrid Pfeiffer); "Philodenros" (Hannes Bohringer); and "Painting alone remains full of adventure - Matisse's Cut-Outs as an Inspiration for Nicolas de Stael, Ellsworth Kelly and Andy Warhol" (Gunda Luyken). A superb guide, Henri Matisse is very strongly recommended addition to personal and academic library Art History reference collections is enhanced with the inclusion of an informative foreword by Max Hollein and Olivier Berggruen, an extensive biography of Mattise, a list of illustrated works, and a selected bibliography for further study.

A Great Book Worthy of Its Subject
Originally published in an expensive hardcover edition as a catalogue to a European exhibition of the same name, Prestel has wisely chosen to republish this important book in a smaller, softbound and attractively priced format.This is an unexpected boon to lovers of Henri Matisse's art, as "Drawing With Scissors" is the most important publication on Matisse's famous last works - the paper cut-outs or gouaches decoupees - to appear in many years, and effectively supercedes John Elderfield's "The Cut-Outs of Henri Matisse" as the best introduction to these famous works.The authors are a noted group of European art historians, and each of the essays here explore different aspects of the making, meaning, and interpretation of these unique objects, from the cut-outs as Matisse's final attempt to unite color and drawing to the cut-outs as revolutionary works which explode the traditional opposition between "high art" and "decoration" in Western history.Although visually simple to the extreme and coloristically exuberant, these last works were the product of many years of searching and investigation into the nature of reality and the creative process, and the authors do justice to the unexpected intellectual heft behind the gorgeous appearance of the cut-outs.Physically, this small book is gorgeous - the layout and design equal the hardcover edition and the quality of the color reproductions is stunning.A must-have for any serious art library. ... Read more

Product Description
This version of Matisse's cut-out masterpiece Jazz is an exquisite and dazzling suite of color plates and text that, like the music it was named for, was invented in a spirit of improvisation and spontaneity.A form filtered to the essentials," the eighty-year old master of modern art called the cut-paper technique. He began experimenting with the medium after an illness impaired his ability to paint, and it was cut paper that gave him a new sense of artistic freedom. Matisse's compositions are accompanied by reflective handwritten thoughts that offer informal advice to artists and students, as well as by an introduction from Riva Castleman, former director of the Department of Prints and Illustrated Books at The Museum of Modern Art. Full color illustrations throughout ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great Book
Henri Matisse's collage cut-out works are my favorite of his, and this book is a treat for anyone who enjoy's his work. Though I cannot read French, the accompanying text is translated at the beginning of the book. However the writing being in a different language does not detract for me, as I feel that the loopy text and the dynamic images go well together.

Tiny!
Just a warning that this edition of Jazz is quite small.It's about the size of a large post card.In addition, the shape of the book- just like the picture, duhh- forces most of the images inside to be even tinier.A cute book, but definitely not a great way to enjoy Matisse's fine work.

A Top Candidate as the Finest 20th Century Art Book!
Many artists run out of steam before their life ends.Their final work either wanders off in unpromising directions or maunders in repetition of themes already better explored earlier.

Matisse was a happy exception.His work continued to be refined and improved.Jazz is arguably his best work and one of the few affordable ways for each of us to view outstanding art in the format for which it was designed.

Where most illustrated books (including other books illustrated by Matisse) accompany a text by a poet or an author, Jazz is based on a text by Matisse.The text, however, is there to create a visual context for the cut-outs.Matisse employed a delightful calligraphy in his own hand to capture his thoughts about how to be an artist.Many artists are very poorly equipped to explain their own work and approaches to creating that work. Matisse once again proves himself to be a giant by producing a text that's as delightful as the brilliant images.

The text is, of course, in French, but a simple English translation precedes the displayed material.

Riva Castleman opens the book with a fine history of the work inception and execution.

Beyond there, you will delight in familiar images.Many of the plates from this book have become cultural icons such as Icarus, Clown, Circus, Horse and Heart.You will doubtless also find new favorites among the various Lagoons and circus-themed cut-outs.

What, you ask, is a cut-out?Matisse was too ill to get out of bed to paint.Instead, he took brightly color paper and cut out images that resemble what a precocious child might do.Then, these images were carefully pinned over other colored sheets on a wall and equally carefully moved in response to Matisse's directions by his patient assistant.

The work captures a freeness, freshness and frolicsome nature that will make you feel young again.They are a remarkable accomplishment for any artist.They present an unbelievable achievement by someone literally warming their death bed.

Even if you don't like modern art, you'll like Jazz.Get the beat!

Possibly the most beautiful book of the 20th Century
Like the style of music for which it is named, Henri Matisse's "Jazz" moves in unexpected rhythms.His first major project in the unique cut-out medium, the book was originally published in a very limited edition.This 1985 edition brings a true work of art to a mass public."Jazz" is a book all book lovers should own, because it forces you to become more aware of the sheer visual pleasure provided by reading.Matisse's calligraphic text can be appreciated for its beauty by those who do not read French (a translation of the text is provided at the front of the edition), and its cool black-and-white austerity rests the eye from the dazzle provided by the amazing plates.Matisse's colors are so bright they burn themselves onto your retina!Do not resist them, for they will transport you into a world where pure forms float in a limitless space, a world simultaneously serene and vivid. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (6)

An Enlightening Primer on Abstract Art
Abstract Art is a well-established medium in the visual arts, but there are many viewers who, while pondering a great work of art, still have difficulty in understanding the concept of the abstract presentation.For those viewers, the exhibition "Matisse:Radical Invention 1913-1917" is THE primer for understanding this difficult, intricate but wholly satisfactory form of visual expression.

The exhibit was mounted in 2010 jointly by the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. That exhibit has now closed, but fortunately, the two museums put together a catalogue that should be in the library of every lover of art.

The exhibit and the catalogue focus on a specific time period, 1913-1917, in the evolution of Matisse's art. But in fact the colorful reproductions and the highly articulate essays in the catalogue contribute a lot to the understanding of abstract art, from Picasso and Matisse to Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning and beyond.

Abstract art involves a number of issues, including color, composition, design, line, form and perspective.Some abstract artists take apart their subjects and then reconstruct them on canvas or as sculpture into their own interpretation of the meaning of the subject.Other artist artists strip their subjects down to their very basic components, leaving the viewer with just a suggestion of the subject, encouraging the viewer to interpret the subject as he or she sees fit.The expressionists let their emotions and their thoughts guide them as they try to paint what they see.

Abstract art can be traced back into the 19th century (Turner, Cezanne and Whistler), but the two most important founders of the genre were Matisse and Picasso.The Matisse work presented in the catalogue of the recent exhibit in New York and Chicago zeroes in like a laser beam on a 5-year period early in Matisse's career.

Consider Matisse's View of Notre Dame, an oil on canvas painting measuring nearly three by five feet.Matisse painted it in 1914, but he didn't exhibit until 1949 when critics dismissed the work as an "unfinished sketch to which Matisse had unaccountably signed his name."

In fact, View of Notre Dame is an exquisite painting, now considered one of Matisse's most important works, and the catalogue devotes four full pages to a discussion of how the painting evolved.

Matisse had a studio at the quai Saint Michelle that gave him a view of Notre Dame Cathedral, and he painted that view numerous times, some included in the catalogue's analysis.But in the painting under discussion here, Matisse had refined the view down to a vague shape that resembled the twin towers of the cathedral, a few black lines that outlined the streets and the Seine River, and a single green mass that starkly represents the trees along the riverbank.The dominant color is a blue wash obscures the details even further.

Like most works in this catalogue, the study of the View of Notre Dame included an infrared examination of the work to see how Matisse developed such a masterpiece.The infrared examination shows us "the extent to which the linear scaffolding was drawn and redrawn, rubbed and scarped back and all but erased, yet still forms the sedimented memory of the work's creation."

Far from being an unfinished sketch, the overall composition has captured the essence of the venerable cathedral that has symbolized Parisian culture for centuries.

The catalogue considers dozens of works by Matisse in a similar manner, including the Art Institute's masterpiece, Bathers by a River. Each discussion adds to the comprehension of not only Matisse's early work but the overall meaning of abstract art in general.We are, literally, taught how to appreciate the techniques of abstract art and how the great abstract painters developed their masterpieces.The experience of reading and considering this catalogue is, in a word, enlightening.

Matisse in America
Unless you are surprised that Russia refused to be apart of this landmark exhibit, every other masterpiece was included in Chicago. This is a wonderful book that goes beyond boring history and reproductions. They go into enough depth for any artist to learn from his technique but also gives a history that builds to an understanding of this exhibit which is the most interesting part of Matisse's life. This book does include the russian examples that were missing in Chicago. That being said buy this book and boycott Russia.

Gorgeously Executed Exhibition Catalog/Book

Radical Re-Invention of the Art Exhibition Catalog!
A catalog as beautifully and thoughtfully designed as the exhibition itself.

The reproduction quality is excellent, each painting and drawing I desired a memory of from the exhibition is reproduced truthfully - on well
designed pages that turn from white to slightly off white to gray. This book is beautifully printed IN ITALY!It is not one of those budget museum Asian print jobs that gets shipped off to Korea or China with color separations done from bad transparencies without any color corrections and sits on a shelf at the end of the exhibition with reproductions that are nothing but a dark shadow of the original art - this is a beautifully designed and extremely well-printed volume. Thank you AIC, MOMA & Yale for designing and printing a book as memorable as the exhibition. I can now look forward to the time I will have to learn more via the text set along with remarkable visuals. This is also a first edition hardback copy at a fantastic price for a book too heavy to lug home on the plane if you are traveling to see the exhibition.

scholarly book
I purchased this book to familiarize myself with Matisse's work from this period, which is really his only work I like.Didn't change my view of him much--he is still an artist I think is over-rated.The book's reproductions are fair, but many are smallish with several/page so images can be compared.Not a coffee-table book with dazzling pictures.Haven't read the text.

Matisse reinventing himself and modern art.
This book is the catalogue for the current exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago, which will then travel to Moma in NYC. It is the first study to have exclusively focused on a crucial timespan in Matisse's career, the years from 1913 to 1917, when the artist experimented with all sorts of styles, techniques and materials, culminating in a major body of works verging on abstraction, such as the Morrocans, French Window at Collioures or Bathers by a River. The aim of the book is to show how and why Matisse came up with such revolutionary works, the influences he was subjected to (from other artists, such as Cézanne or the Cubists, but also from outside events, namely WWI) and how these works relate to each other (especially the back and forth movement of strict or lushful colors, the artist alternately producing ascetic works almost entirely black and gray and others richly colored).

Richly documented (here I would like to point out, on pages 32-37, a very interesting glossary of technical terms that helps the reader delve into Matisse's craft and discover some of his secrets), full of marvelous illustrations and, most of all, replete with magnified details of the works which emphasize Matisse's working process (what he would later call, in a 1952 interview with Tériade, the "methods of modern construction"), this is a high-quality publication, a groundbreaking study which I strongly recommend to anyone interested in the origins and the making of modern art. ... Read more

Product Description
"...to devote my life to the essential thing-- the thing for which I am made and which can bring a little happiness to the great family, the greatest spiritual family."--Matisse to André Rouveyre, September 4, 1942

Of all the artists of this century, Henri Matisse is one of the greatest and most beloved. His influence on modern art, both during his lifetime and today, has never stopped growing; in the eyes of the world, he is the French painter par excellence.

Henri Matisse is all the more cherished because his work celebrates the positive aspects of life, as evidenced by the titles of many of his major paintings: Luxe, Calme et Volupté, La Joie de Vivre, La Danse, Musique, to mention but a few. His explosions and juxtapositions of color and pattern inspire pure delight in the beholder, and his mastery of line, volume, and form are perhaps unequaled in the art of our time. The vitality, energy, and life-enhancing qualities that radiate from his art represent distillation of all that is affirmative in the human condition and are given immortality through that rare and indefinable quality known as genius.

The art of Matisse describes a trajectory leading from realism to abstraction, from darkness to light, from the cold of the north to the heat of the south, a route marked off by such revolutionary innovations as the burst of color found in Fauvism or the invention of his cut-outs. Matisse was still creating at a time in his life when many artists are content to rest on their laurels.

Since its original publication in 1984, this book by Pierre Schneider stands alone as the bible on the art of Matisse. The author spent fourteen years amassing a prodigious amount of information on the artist, and includes his own personal and original views on the work. Including over nine hundred illustrations, this is the most substantial reference of the works of Matisse ever published.

The reader will discover Matisse watercolorist, draftsman, ceramist, and the architect-- and unquestionably one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A landmark
There are some artbooks that can be considered landmarks of the genre and this is one such book. In 1986, Pierre Schneider, a respected French art critic for the French weekly L'Express, published this most important book on the greatest French painter of the XXth century and, in my opinion, it has not been equalled ever since. From the introduction (which is an in-depth study of the 1911 painting "The Conversation") to the last chapter centered on the late cut-outs, we are treated to a genuine firework of brilliant insight and marvelous reproductions. Every major work is analysed thoroughly and Matisse's life is followed with a host of erudite details (such as parallels drawn between Matisse's art and Proust's writings or Mallarmé's poetry)and all this makes this book not only a pleasure for the eye but also a great read.

The Bible On Matisse
I noticed that this is coming back into print in November 2002, so I figured I'd write this review. If you are a fan of Matisse, you should snap up this book. It is an awesome achievement by Mr. Schneider. There is a tremendous amount of biographical data here, as well as a wealth of reproductions- both color and black and white. One caveat, though. This is definitely not for the casual reader! There is a lot of detailed analysis of the paintings included- such things as Matisse's theories on the use of color and shape; the tremendous amount of work and thought that went into each work in order to create color harmony and a balance of all the pictorial elements, etc. Mr. Schneider respects the reader, so some of this stuff can be a real challenge! But I found it very worthwhile! Matisse's paintings are deceptive, at least to the layperson. They seem soothing and simple. Well, I can promise you that after reading this wonderful book you may still find the paintings soothing, but when you realize what went into the process of creating them you will never again think of them as being simple! This is one of those rare books that opens your eyes and makes you look at something in a completely new way.Reviewer Note: Please be aware that the book I am reviewing is the over 700 page book written by Pierre Schneider, NOT the much shorter book written by Mr. Jacobus and only translated by Mr. Schneider! ... Read more

Product Description
No other subject inspired Henri Matisse with such passion throughout his career as the female figure in interior settings. This is the most comprehensive publication to cover the topic of women in the work of the great regenerator of European painting, and in so doing, it covers the full spectrum of Matisseís creative evolution, from the small, somber, early pictures to the masterly compositions of his Fauvist phase, the intimate pictorial inventions of the Nice period, and finally the luminous paper cutouts of his late work. Many of the interiors show women reading, sleeping or daydreaming, passive figures enveloped in Oriental fabrics, costumed as odalisques or reclining on chaise longues. Additional motifs include the artist and his model, the artistís studio, the portrait, the still-life, and the view from a window.Figure Color Space offers an in-depth survey of this important subject in Matisseís work, through which he developed and continually explored his rich and imaginative repertoire of forms and colors. Along with paintings from all periods, it includes sculptures, drawings, cutouts and prints, as well as historical studio photographs by Cartier-Bresson, Brassao, HÈlÈne Adant and others. A richly illustrated biography completes this exquisite presentation. ... Read more

Product Description
Teal leather with gilt decoration and lettering. Other features include smyth-sewn pages, moire fabric endsheets and a satin ribbon page marker. Illustrated by Henri Matisse. ... Read more