Matisse in His Time: Masterworks of Modernism

Henri Matisse (1869-1954) dominated the art world during the first half of the twentieth century. A prolific, curious, and social artist, he was at the heart of artistic debates throughout his career. In turn, Matisse was the leader of the Fauve movement, a critical observer of Cubism, disciple and friend of Impressionist painters like Pierre-Auguste Renoir, master of an academy, and a major rival to Pablo Picasso. He fundamentally altered the course of Modern Art and deeply affected the work of younger generations. 

Matisse in His Time: Masterworks of Modernism from the Centre Pompidou, Paris, is organized by the Centre Pompidou —Europe’s leading museum of Modern and Contemporary Art— in collaboration with the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Visitors to the exhibition will experience the full scope of Matisse’s extraordinary career through nearly fifty of his paintings, sculptures, drawings, and prints, dating from the late nineteenth century to after World War II. In addition to these masterpieces, Matisse in His Time also features fifty additional major works by many of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century, including iconic works by Picasso, as well as Renoir, André Derain, Georges Braque, Joan Miró, and Amedeo Modigliani.

OKCMOA is the exclusive North American venue for Matisse in His Time: Masterworks of Modernism from the Centre Pompidou, Paris, which presents, for the first time outside Europe, highlights from one of the world’s preeminent collections of Modern Art.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.

Whether you go or not, the exhibition catalog, Matisse: In His Time, presents the work of Henri Matisse through his influences, friendships, contemporaries and connections, juxtaposing Matisse's pieces with those of other artists, such as Picasso and Braque, placing each work in artistic context of their time. Matisse's work is compared with other masterpieces from the same collection - Picasso to Viallat, including Braque, Léger, Dufy, Renoir and Bonnard. What is being proposed here is not, therefore, the Master of Dance isolated in his ivory tower, but a Matisse in connection with his time, through his friendships, and the abundant and fruitful exchanges with his contemporaries.