Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs

All cut-outs by Henri Matisse (French, 1869-1954). Memory of Oceania (Souvenir d'Océanie), summer 1952-early 1953. Gouache on paper, cut and pasted, and charcoal on paper, mounted on canvas. Copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

MoMA's Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs is a comprehensive exhibition of the artist's paper cut-outs created between 1937 and 1954. On display are 100 papiers découpés, drawings, illustrated books, stained glass, and textiles from his late work. One of the most significant colorists of all time, Matisse was a painter, draftsman, sculptor, and printmaker.

Matisse's studio, Hôtel Régina, Nice, c. 1953. Photo: Lydia Delectorskaya, copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse.

The exhibition highlights his three studio-residences from this period, where the cut-outs were composed: An apartment in Paris at 132 Boulevard Montparnasse, Villa le Rêve in Vence (1943-1948) and the Hôtel Régina, Nice, above image (1949-1954).

Composition Green Background (Composition fond vert), 1947. Gouache on paper, cut and pasted, and pencil. Photograph: H. Robertson, Copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse, Paris/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Initially, he had no artwork in mind regarding the cut-outs, "I am cutting out all these elements and putting them up on the walls temporarily. I do not yet know what I will do with these new découpages. Perhaps panels, wall hangings." The paper forms were utilized as maquettes to structure other projects: Tapestries, books, illustrations, ballet sets, murals, stained glass, and ceramics. When Matisse was in ill health following surgery and could not paint, he considered them anew as an independent medium--the cut-outs "were a long time in the making." By 1947 he began to work extensively with cut paper, creating over 200 découpages in less than a decade. 

Henri Matisse, Boulevard Montparnasse, Paris, 1947. Copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse.

Cover maquette for the book Matisse: His Art and His Public, 1951. Gouache on paper, cut and pasted. Copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. 

Hôtel Régina, Nice, 1953. Photo: Hélène Adant.

Encompassing sculpture, drawing and painting, the cut-outs grew from pinboards to murals to room-size works. As their scale increased, Matisse developed a process of cutting the gouache painted sheets into various shapes, which were then tacked to the walls by assistants on ladders according to his direction. The découpages were ephemeral and movable. He continually shifted the forms so they interacted in different ways, unpinning and repinning them. The decorative configuration might last several months as he added in or modified images. "The entire arrangement is expressive; the places occupied by the figures, the empty spaces around them, the proportions, everything has its share." In the studio interiors, the pictorial expansion could cover all surfaces--walls, doors, molding, panelling, mantels, and around windows. He mixed in works in other media: Paintings, textiles, ink drawings, and posters.

The Swimming Pool (La Piscine), late summer 1952. Maquette for ceramic (realized 1999 and 2005). Gouache on paper, cut and pasted, on painted paper. Copyright 2014 Succession H. Matisse/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

The Swimming Pool is the centerpiece of the exhibition--Matisse's only site-specific environmental work, created for the dining room of his apartment at the Hôtel Régina in 1952 (above and previous image). He formed cut-outs of divers, swimmers and sea creatures based on a favorite pool in Cannes. The 54-foot frieze returns to the galleries after a lengthy conservation.

On view through February 8, MoMA, 11 West 53 Street.