My Art Museum 'Henri Matisse Special Exhibition'... Over 120 Original Works on Display

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Maia Art Museum, located in Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, is holding a solo exhibition of Henri Matisse (1869?1954) to commemorate the 150th anniversary of his birth until March 3 next year.

Matisse is a representative painter of the Fauvism movement, known for his vivid colors, and is regarded alongside Picasso as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century.

Matisse was born in 1869 in Cambrai, northern France, and studied law until he was twenty. In 1892, he moved to Paris to study art and successively explored Impressionism, C?zanne, and Neo-Impressionism. During a painting trip to southern France, he developed innovative painting techniques together with painter Andr? Derain, and they later became known as the Fauves. He created works featuring various spatial expressions and decorative elements, and after 1932, he attempted flattening and simplification. Until his death in Nice in 1954, Matisse left a vast body of work over 50 years in oil painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, cut-outs, and book illustrations. His representative works include Woman with a Hat, Dance, The Red Studio, Polynesia, The Swimming Pool, and Icarus.

This special exhibition displays over 120 diverse original works, including Matisse’s late 'Cut-Out' technique masterpieces from the Jazz series, drawings, lithographs, stage costumes designed for ballet performances, and the Rosario Chapel architecture.

'Jazz' shows the purity and passion of Matisse’s late art. Inspired by his travels to Tahiti, Morocco, and other places, he patterned natural motifs and expressed them with vivid colors. The concise and condensed forms shown in Matisse’s cut-outs have had a broad influence on 20th and 21st-century abstract art and minimalist design. This special exhibition allows visitors to appreciate the vivid colors and delicate line beauty across Matisse’s works in various media.

The exhibited works are from the collections of the Picasso Museum in Germany, the Lambert Collection in Avignon, the Monte Carlo Monaco Ballet, and Collection Marzocco.

Visitors can create their own cut-out artworks through the participatory program 'Our Cut-Outs.' Regular and special docent tours are provided to enhance understanding of the works, and various educational and cultural programs linked to the exhibition, such as Kids Atelier and seasonal event promotions, are offered for children.