Henri Matisse: The Cut Outs At Tate Modern

Tabish Khan
By Tabish Khan Last edited 119 months ago
Henri Matisse: The Cut Outs At Tate Modern
Image autorisée à Rosamund Young Tate par Rosamund Young

Detail de l'image : 

Numéro d'oeuvre : RMN108830

Cote cliché : 07-502043

N° d’inventaire : AM1985-315(8)

Fonds : Dessins

Titre : Icare

Description : de la série : Jazz (Série de 20 planches, 15 doubles pages et 5 pleines pages, 15 doubles pages et 5 pleines pages, 1943-1946)

Auteur : Matisse Henri (1869-1954)

Droits d'auteur : (C) Succession H. Matisse

Crédit photographique : (C) Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Philippe Migeat

Période : 20e siècle, période contemporaine de 1914 à nos jours

Date : ~~July~~ 1946

Technique/Matière : papiers collés

Hauteur : 0.434 m.

Longueur : 0.341 m.

Localisation : Paris, musée national d'Art moderne - Centre Georges Pompidou

Conditions d'utilisation : Nathalie Dioh - Matisse Cut-Outs - 14/4/2014 - Type de facturation : x Achat InternetSupport : Edition de livresTirage : 4001 à 10.000Territoire : Monde toutes langues - JPEG - 4000X6000 pixels 

© CNAC / Réunion des Musées Nationaux
Henri Matisse, Icarus 1946 Maquette for plate VIII of the illustrated book Jazz 1947 Digital image: © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jean-Claude Planchet Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014
Henri Matisse, The Horse, the Rider, and the Clown 1943-4
Maquette for plate V of the illustrated book Jazz 1947
© Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jean-Claude Planchet
© Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013
Henri Matisse, The Horse, the Rider, and the Clown 1943-4 Maquette for plate V of the illustrated book Jazz 1947 © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jean-Claude Planchet © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013
Henri Matisse, Blue Nude (I) 1952
Foundation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel
Photo: Robert Bayer, Basel
© Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013
Henri Matisse, Blue Nude (I) 1952 Foundation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel Photo: Robert Bayer, Basel © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013
Henri Matisse, Large Composition with Masks 1953
National Gallery of Art, Washington. Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund 1973.17.1
Digital Image: © National Gallery of Art, Washington
Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014
Henri Matisse, Large Composition with Masks 1953 National Gallery of Art, Washington. Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund 1973.17.1 Digital Image: © National Gallery of Art, Washington Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014
Henri Matisse, Memory of Oceania 1952-3
MoMA
Digital image: © 2013. The Museum of Modern Art, New York / Scala Florence
Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014
Henri Matisse, Memory of Oceania 1952-3 MoMA Digital image: © 2013. The Museum of Modern Art, New York / Scala Florence Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014
Henri Matisse, The Snail 1953
Tate
© Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013
Henri Matisse, The Snail 1953 Tate © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2013

Alongside the Veronese blockbuster at National Gallery, this has been one of the mostanticipated art exhibitions of the year, but does it live up to the hype? Matisse is one of history's most versatile artists but by focussing on one aspect of his portfolio, is there a risk of curating a repetitive exhibition?

The show opens with a video of Matisse creating one of his cut outs. Despite his age and being wheelchair bound, he is working with an intensity and fervour of somebody half his age. The exhibition continues with many of his smaller works and it's amazing how much can be conveyed with what are essentially simple colours and shapes.

Dancers bound with energy, pain is evident as Icarus plummets back to earth and a wolf looks terrifying with its  angular features and razor sharp teeth. There is a lull in the middle of this show as a recreation of Matisse's studio walls is lost in a large gallery, and the tribute to Matisse's chapel at Vence is a ridiculously poor representation of the actual building.

But from here on, the exhibition accelerates through gallery after gallery of bright, bold forms culminating in a crescendo of riotous colour. Massive works such as Sheaf and The Parakeet and the Mermaid are all encompassing when seen in person.

This exhibition shows how diverse Matisse could be even when working in a seemingly uniform medium — it's a whirlwind of colour that burnt images on to our retinas and delivers on the hype.

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs is on at Tate Modern until 7 September. Tickets are £16.30 for adults, concessions available. Also still on at Tate Modern is the diverse retrospective of Richard Hamilton.

For more exhibitions to see in London this month, check out our April art events listing and our list of other South London cultural gems.

Last Updated 17 April 2014