Henri Matisse

Formes [Forms] (from 'Jazz')

About this artwork

In 1942 the publisher, Elf Tériade, commissioned Matisse to make a book of colour images. Matisse selected Jazz as the title to reflect the vibrancy and rhythm of the images and although conceived as a book on the circus he began to incorporate other subjects and motifs, such as this image of forms. This work could be seen as preceding Matisse’s famous blue nudes of the 1950s. Following surgery for cancer in 1941, Matisse began to work with cut-outs; the sensual forms of the cut paper became an iconic part of his practice.

Updated before 2020

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Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse