Henri Matisse was born in the north of France at Le Cateau-Cambresis in 1869. It was not
until he was 21 years old that he became interested in painting as a career.
In 1891, Matisse began studying at the Acadmie Julian under Bouguereau. In 1892,
he transferred to Gustave Moreau's studio at the cole des Beaux-Arts. His first successful
show was made in 1896 at the Salon de la Societ Nationale des Beaux Arts. Matisse was
largely influenced by the impressionist artists who preceded him, but it was not until 1902
that his own style was fully developed.
In 1905 and 1906, Matisse painted with Marquet in Paris. One of his most-celebrated
works of that period is "Open Window, Collioure" which employed Impressionistic pastel colors
and caught a glimpse of the surroundings outside his window. After his time spent with
Marquet, Matisse's style reached its peak. Matisse headed the then newly found art movement
called Fauvism. His works abandoned the use of light colors; instead, he used darker, richer
hues which resulted in grand-scale works of art, all in a decorative style.
Matisse's journeys took him to places such as Munich, Seville, Moscow and Tangiers
between the years of 1910 and 1914. After this time, he lived in Coullioure, Paris and Nice.
Finally, in 1918, an exhibition featuring the works of Matisse, as well as Picasso, opened at the
Guillaume Gallery.
After World War II, Matisse was taken ill and was confined to his bed. It was at this
time that he began to create book designs and illustrations. One of his most unique books is
entitled "Jazz" and was published in 1947. The piece entitled "The Clown From Jazz" was
originally published in this book. At the end of Matisse's life, he is known to have reflected on
the past in such a way that he was finally able to understand his own "rebellions."
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