Henri Matisse

Fauvism founder Henri Matisse (1869-1954) revolutionized modern art with his bold use of color and fluid draughtsmanship. Born in northern France, he came to painting at age 20 while recovering from appendicitis. His 1905 painting "Woman with a Hat" shocked viewers at the Salon d'Automne with its wild, non-naturalistic colors, prompting a critic to call Matisse and his colleagues "fauves" (wild beasts). Throughout his 60-year career, he pursued what he called "an art of balance, of purity and serenity," whether in paintings, drawings, sculptures, or his revolutionary paper cut-outs.

Matisse studied at the Académie Julian and later under Gustave Moreau at the École des Beaux-Arts. A pivotal summer painting with André Derain at Collioure in 1905 launched Fauvism. Though the movement lasted only a few years, its liberation of color influenced all modern art. Matisse spent his later years in Nice, creating increasingly simplified forms. When illness prevented him from painting, he turned to paper cut-outs, calling the technique "painting with scissors." His design for the Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence (1948-1951) represented the culmination of his spiritual aesthetic. Today, major collections exist at the Museum of Modern Art, the Hermitage, the Centre Pompidou, and the Musée Matisse in Nice.