Product Description
What makes Henri Matisse a 'modernist', when so much of his work harks back to older French traditions and the artist himself never seems entirely at home in the twentieth century? Bock-Weiss addresses the paradox of Matisse's status as a canonical modern artist, but one whose work and career cannot be mapped onto conventional histories of an insurrectionary modernism. She frames this issue by positioning the artist in surprising contexts: his manipulation of mass media in shaping his public image, his singular relationship with Gertrude Stein, and his painterly use of cinematic devices in the 1920s to respond to the crisis of cubism. Equally unprecedented is the author's close examination of two major critical responses to Matisse's work: a formalist defense by the Russian dance critic Andre Levinson, and the claim by Pierre Schneider and others that Matisse is a spiritual artist on the Byzantine/Islamic model. Providing neither a unified portrait of the artist nor a new definition of modernism itself, the author considers the many-faceted elements of the artist's life, work, and reputation to present a comprehensive new framework for viewing both Matisse and modernism. ... Read more

Product Description
Henri Matisse, who lived from 1869 to 1954, was a painter, sculptor, muralist, and stage set designer. His mature years saw his important works in lithography and the birth of his famous colored paper designs constructed with paste and scissors. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Famous Artists: Matisse
As a parent and volunteer educator, this book and the others in this series provide excellent age appropriate material and interesting facts about the most important artists.The book offers great visuals, with manyideas for looking at art with youngsters.Even the exercises are easy andsuccessful.The format is busy, but eyecatching and informative.I amordering the whole series! ... Read more

Product Description
Cézanne and the Dawn of Modern Art presents selected paintings by Paul Cézanne alongside works by younger artists that reveal the powerful influence of the man hailed as the founder of modern painting. The driving forces in the reception of Cézanne's art were not art critics, art historians, or even the artist himself, but rather other artists--primarily the Fauves led by Matisse, de Vlaminck, and Derain; and the Cubists including Picasso, Braque, and Léger--all of whom absorbed and elaborated on Cézanne's revolutionary ideas about color and composition.

Against this background of Cézannisme, the book presents key works by Cézanne and younger artists in revealing juxtapositions. Readers will discover analogies and variations between the works of the "father of modern art" and those of his successors in a series of related motifs--portraits, still lifes, and landscapes. This volume is, indeed, a compact history of the icons of modern art. It offers new insight into one of modern art's most complex artists, traces the influence of Cézanne's work on a succeeding generation of 20th-century artists, and examines tendencies in Cézanne's art that paved the way for both the Fauve and Cubist movements.From the moment he begins to put down a stroke, the painting is already there. -Pablo Picasso on Paul CézanneEdited by Felix A. Baumann, Walter Feilchenfeldt, and Hubertus Gassner.

Essays by Pepe Karmel, Peter Kropmanns and Fred Leemann.Hardcover, 9.5 x 11 in./240 pgs / 113 color and 67 b&w. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Amazing pictures and art
Great prints of Cezanne and many modern artists influenced by him: Braque, Picasso, Matisse, Vlaminck, etc.

Cezanne and the Dawn of Modern Art
Clearly written with good choices of examples for demonstrating Cezanne's influence. Hardbound cloth wrapped book in excellent condition. Very good color separations and printing. I recommend this book for anyone studying the work of Cezanne and his place in art history. ... Read more

Product Description
In the brilliant sun of Nice, Henri Matisse painted the brightest, boldest colors he could imagine. Joyfully he painted everywhere and everyone. Enchanted and with a light heart, he painted all the time. This lovely book introduces young readers to the beloved painter Henri Matisse. With delightful illustrations, Le Tord captures the vivid colors of Matisse, and her poetic words sing to the music of his pictures. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

a work of beauty
A Bird or two opens your heart, your eyes to the extraordinary colorful work of Matisse. With great insight to his work Bijou Le Tord lets us enter the world of grace of this wonderful, beloved French artist. A must in all libraries, homes, wherever art is loved!

A Bird or Two is strong
"I am strong because I do what is in my mind."

It will be a child's recitation of these words that will make parents proud of thepurchase of Bijou Le Tord's book, A Bird or Two.A Bird or Two, which is abiography of Heni Matisse, does not simply factualize the life of thefamous painter, instead it fleshes him out and gives him spirit, life, andstrength.As an introduction to the world of art, Le Tord's book isbrilliant.

The book itself is a piece of art, thus it reflects the workof it's hero, Matisse, in a way that facts cannot.In Le Tord's book therelies a well-defined tribute to the famous artist which even the youngestchild can grasp and cherish.

Educational and Fun!
After attending a Matisse exhibition I was eager to pass on my love for his paintings to my young nephews. This book is so effective in teaching them about the artist that even I learned a coupleof things. So,if you'relooking for a fun way to introduce young kids to art this book is a goodtool. This book will give kids a friendly overview of who Matisse was andwhat motivated him to paint. It'll also show them "kid versions"of his most famous paintings. It's such a fun book that Irecommend it foradults as well ... Read more

Product Description
A biography of the artist discusses his tumultuous emotional life, the era in which he lived, the politics of the art world, the acceptance and rejection of his artistic vision, and other issues. 12,500 first printing. ... Read more

Product Description
Explores the lives and works of the world's greatest artists. This title takes readers inside each artist's studio to learn about the people, places and events that had the biggest influences on their careers. It also discovers how artists work had an impact, not only on the times in which they lived but also on our world. ... Read more

Product Description
The parallel lives of two compelling and competitive artists and their recurrent engagements with desire and mortality.

Matisse and Picasso achieved extraordinary prominence during their lifetimes. They have become cultural icons, standing not only for different kinds of art but also for different ways of living. Matisse, known for his restraint and intense sense of privacy, for his decorum and discretion, created an art that transcended daily life and conveyed a sensuality that inhabited an abstract and ethereal realm of being. In contrast, Picasso became the exemplar of intense emotionality, of theatricality, of art as a kind of autobiographical confession that was often charged with violence and explosive eroticism. In Matisse and Picasso, Jack Flam explores the compelling, competitive, parallel lives of these two artists and their very different attitudes toward the idea of artistic greatness, toward the women they loved, and ultimately toward their confrontations with death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

No color for the art book in kindle edition
I am using iPad version of Kindle that can display colors.
This book is also an art book, and displaying the arts in black and white
is meaningless. While I understand Amazon's black and white only Kindle
for low battery consumption and cheap price, I will never buy such device
(that can handle only black and white).
Even though Kindle device is itself black and white, I hope that
the contents be in color, since there are Kindle readers that can display
colors, like iPad Kindle (Mac Kindle, PC Kindle) and so on.

Must read for Art lovers!!!
This is an excellent book. I am thoroughly enjoying it.
This book compares great painters 'Henri Matisse' and 'Pablo Picasso' works and the influence of each other and their works on the others art.
Henri Matisse with his keeping the painting simple and lively and Picasso with his cubism, drawing from imagination are 'artists of different worlds'. They have different painting styles and they paint at exactly opposite times.
The book goes through the works of each in the order one was done as a reacton to the other, sometimes one trying to beat the other at their own style.

CITES:
Baudelaire's essay- 'The Painter of Modern Life'.
Apollinaire's essay on Picasso's work.(also his 'La Poete assasine')
Picasso's play - 'Desire caught by the tail'.
Matisse - 'Notes of a Painter'.

Lucid, Riviting Artist Stories
Imagine one tightly written book that can tell you what the art world was like for much of the 20th Century! Jack Flam is the man who did just that in "Matisse Picaso." Then imagine learning all about the lives of Matisse and Picasso and their loves along with their push-pull friendship and competition. After that get the skinny on the paintings both men painted. I never even saw all the -------- in Picasso's paintings. Now, it is hard to see anything else.

I found this book to be much more exciting then typical biographies that include all the boring parts of people's lives. Here you get all the interesting parts with all the boring parts left out. I read every word and recommend the book without reservation. In fact, I believe every art student needs to read this book, every artist, every art affictionado.

Esthetic in braid
If this be gossip, then it is the best kind. Engaging account of the rivalry/synergy of Matisse and Picasso and the interactions over half a century, with a Gertrude Stein introit at the beginning. This competition is fairly lightweight stuff as far as I can see although throwing rubber suction darts at a Matisse painting gets close to borderline rascalian--Picasso probably loses points on adolescent misdemeanours, but the art of both leaves us unable to judge, save that a third here could not be found.

Matisse and Picasso by Flam
This is an excellent work for art history enthusiasts. It depicts
many famous works of art by Matisse and Picasso. Classically,
Matisse is known for the artful use of color; whereas, Picasso
is credited with the unique form of Cubism which pervades
his artwork. Flam depicts important works by both artists.
For instance, Matisse's "The Woman With The Hat" is shown in
full color. Picasso's "The Acrobat's Family" is depicted
together with "The Two Nudes". These pictures show the emotional side of Picasso's work in contradistinction to
Matisse's exercise of restraint. This book would make a
perfect gift for a friend, relative or art buff. ... Read more

Product Description
Henri Matisse is one of the masters of twentieth-century art and a household word to millions of people who find joy and meaning in his light-filled, colorful images--yet, despite all the books devoted to his work, the man himself has remained a mystery. Now, in the hands of the superb biographer Hilary Spurling, the unknown Matisse becomes visible at last.

Matisse was born into a family of shopkeepers in 1869, in a gloomy textile town in the north of France. His environment was brightened only by the sumptuous fabrics produced by the local weavers--magnificent brocades and silks that offered Matisse his first vision of light and color, and which later became a familiar motif in his paintings. He did not find his artistic vocation until after leaving school, when he struggled for years with his father, who wanted him to take over the family seed-store. Escaping to Paris, where he was scorned by the French art establishment, Matisse lived for fifteen years in great poverty--an ordeal he shared with other young artists and with Camille Joblaud, the mother of his daughter, Marguerite.

But Matisse never gave up. Painting by painting, he struggled toward the revelation that beckoned to him, learning about color, light, and form from such mentors as Signac, Pissarro, and the Australian painter John Peter Russell, who ruled his own art colony on an island off the coast of Brittany. In 1898, after a dramatic parting from Joblaud, Matisse met and married Amélie Parayre, who became his staunchest ally. She and their two sons, Jean and Pierre, formed with Marguerite his indispensable intimate circle.

From the first day of his wedding trip to Ajaccio in Corsica, Matisse realized that he had found his spiritual home: the south, with its heat, color, and clear light. For years he worked unceasingly toward the style by which we know him now. But in 1902, just as he was on the point of achieving his goals as a painter, he suddenly left Paris with his family for the hometown he detested, and returned to the somber, muted palette he had so recently discarded.

Why did this happen? Art historians have called this regression Matisse's "dark period," but none have ever guessed the reason for it. What Hilary Spurling has uncovered is nothing less than the involvement of Matisse's in-laws, the Parayres, in a monumental scandal which threatened to topple the banking system and government of France. The authorities, reeling from the divisive Dreyfus case, smoothed over the so-called Humbert Affair, and did it so well that the story of this twenty-year scam--and the humiliation and ruin its climax brought down on the unsuspecting Matisse and his family--have been erased from memory until now.

It took many months for Matisse to come to terms with this disgrace, and nearly as long to return to the bold course he had been pursuing before the interruption. What lay ahead were the summers in St-Tropez and Collioure; the outpouring of "Fauve" paintings; Matisse's experiments with sculpture; and the beginnings of acceptance by dealers and collectors, which, by 1908, put his life on a more secure footing.

Hilary Spurling's discovery of the Humbert Affair and its effects on Matisse's health and work is an extraordinary revelation, but it is only one aspect of her achievement. She enters into Matisse's struggle for expression and his tenacious progress from his northern origins to the life-giving light of the Mediterranean with rare sensitivity. She brings to her task an astonishing breadth of knowledge about his family, about fin-de-siècle Paris, the conventional Salon painters who shut their doors on him, his artistic comrades, his early patrons, and his incipient rivalry with Picasso.

In Hilary Spurling, Matisse has found a biographer with a detective's ability to unearth crucial facts, the narrative power of a novelist, and profound empathy for her subject.


From the Hardcover edition.Amazon.com Review
"Matisse was born in 1869 in northern France and grew up inBohain-en-Vermandois, near the Belgian border, on the drab, cold, wetbeet fields of French Flanders. The same area, culturally andgeographically speaking, had produced Vincent van Gogh sixteen yearsbefore." Thus begins the first full biography of an artist who, morethan any other, is associated with Mediterranean heat, brilliant colorand light, and languid, luxurious interiors. As author Hilary Spurlingpoints out, an open window is one of Matisse's frequent motifs. Giventhe climate of his youth, that image speaks more of escape than of thesea air of the French Riviera.

If all biographers wrote with Spurling's warmth, empathy, andintelligence, no one would likely want to read any other kind ofbook. The Unknown Matisse is thoroughly researched, with pagesdevoted to minutiae that Spurling imparts with wit and style, makingevery nuance of Matisse's early development fascinating. She tells toothe story of Matisse's family life (Mme. Matisse risked herrespectable reputation by adopting Henri's first, illegitimatedaughter), his brilliant ideas about art, and the years it took forhis paintings to find their rightful audience. It was her intentionfinally to give as much weight to Matisse's life as has been given tohis work, but in the process of examining the man she sheds new lighton the art as well. --Peggy Moorman ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

First of the two volume standard biography of a Master Artist
Visiting NYC for two weeks coincident with the limited exhibition of Matisse's work at the Museum of Modern Art, I was finally driven to begin reading the two volume biography by Spurling. This comment follows completion of the first volume. Tomorrow on to the second. It has been quite useful to have both the fine MoMA exhibition and additional works from its permanent collection available as well as the classics at the Met, while reading the book. A fair proportion in both settings were created during the period covered by the book. It is commonplace to base discussions of Matisse, less so with Picasso, on the comparison with Picasso. There is no doubt from the sources, that much of their careers involved awareness of the others existence and reaction to that fact. In this volume, Picasso enters onto the scene only near the end as both he and Matisse produce seminal works, Picasso's Brothel and Matisse's Dance. My own take on their lives, enlightened by this excellent biography of Matisse, is that, whatever may be ones conclusions as to their work, Picasso had by far the easier road to his achievements in the first decade of the 20th century than did Matisse. Picasso was born to an artistic family and was always the golden boy, as far as they and many friends were concerned. At 19, he was doing highly professional and generally accepted work, although too derivative for his taste and desire to be recognized as what he always knew he was meant to be: the greatest artist in Paris- which meant, to him, the greatest artist in the world. Matisse was born into a family and social setting which abhorred the idea of art as a way of life, had few who thought him even talented, and, at the age of 31 (in 1900), was still struggling to survive as an artist and to be judged as worthy of the title. His story is the classic one of the desperate struggle of an Original, against all odds, to support himself and his family, while going his own way against the tide.
This book tells the story with clarity and literary skill so as to make the book almost un-put-downable. It is mandatory reading for any layperson seeking to understand Matisse and his work. It is recommended reading for anyone seeking to know Matisse better than any other source will allow (to understand his life and where the work stands within it; there are other, very fine monographs, focussed on the art-work itself, which must be read for a fuller picture of the whole man).
A point about the book production: the paperbound copy of this volume which I read fell apart in the process; whether a fluke of the assembly line or a common risk, I do not know. I have the hardbound version of the second volume.

One of the best ever
A good friend gave me Matisse the Master, the second volume of Hilary Spurling's two-volume biography. I was 100 pages into it when I decided I really needed to re-start at the beginning, so I bought The Unknown Matisse. It is one of the best biographies I've ever read.
Matisse began his life in a small town where existence was still virtually medieval. With impassable roads for much of the year, life was basic and art was suspect. Despite disapproval and ridicule for his ambitions, Matisse went on to become one of the two most famous and influential artists of the 2oth century. Spurling sheds light on Matisse's struggles and humiliations as well as putting his experiences into the context of his time. You understand his later reticence after the Humbert Affair- a Bernie Madoff scenario- in which his in-laws were involved. Spurling introduces Matisse's friends, supporters and detractors and makes all the interactions so fascinating that it becomes a natural follow-up to Google all these names and follow their stories too. And then you are eager for Volume Two.

first rate!!
i loved this book - many new insights on matisse, the preeminent modern artist - very well researched and written -

The Unknown Matisse Revealed
I was impatiently awaiting the arrival of The Unknown Matisse and have not been disappointed. Hilary Spurling has truly written a superb book. For all those who are interested in the passing from the old school of art to the new concepts that gave way to modern art as we understand it, this book is for you. This book compares favorably with John Richardson's massive Picasso biography. The Unknown Matisse is a book I will keep going back to over the years.

James Townsend

Painful Beginnings
Matisse has always suffered from bad press.In his home town he was known as a triple failure: He couldn't take over the family seed store, he didn't make a career in law work and he threw away a chance to be a popular Salon artist.When people saw his latest paintings, they were often overwhelmed and unprepared for what they saw.Only a few visionary collectors and fellow artists understood his ground-breaking efforts.Picasso and those who supported Picasso felt that they had to run down Matisse to help their own cause . . . despite having "borrowed" heavily from Matisse.Later, most of Matisse's early masterpieces were hidden away in foreign, private collections while crowds jeered at his latest work.

The pain of all this was immense for Matisse.But his private sorrows were made even greater by the difficulties he had in developing his style, the birth of an illegitimate child whom he acknowledged who suffered from serious health problems, and the poverty that dogged him until he was around 40.What is less well known is that his in-laws became embroiled in one of the most celebrated scandals of all time in France, and Matisse found himself drawn into saving them.

Ms. Spurling does well in capturing the agony of being Matisse.

Her style though leaves something to be desired.Much of the information is superficial rather than revealing.In many cases, I felt like I was reading someone's unreflective daily diary.An exception was the material on the Humbert Scandal which Ms. Spurling has also written about quite well in La Grande Therese.

Ms. Spurling also could have included more about Matisse's art in this book.

But you will learn a lot about Matisse from this book that you won't find in most other sources.

I found the recent companion volume, Matisse the Master, to be much more rewarding.If you decide to read only one of the two books, I suggest that one.But you may decide to come back and read this one later, as I did. ... Read more

Product Description
Few artists have explored genres and techniques with such curiosity and pleasure as Henri Matisse, whose fascination with the relationship between interior and exterior forms occupied him throughout his career. In the early 1950s, he chose to dedicate his last years to the Chapel of the Rosary in Vence and the nursery school in his hometown of Le Cateau-Cambrésis, both in the South of France. These sites represent a culmination of all Matisse's earlier visual and spatial explorations.

This book sheds new light on the development of Matisse's oeuvre, which spans some 60 years. Lavishly illustrated with almost 400 images, this deluxe volume includes beautiful reproductions of the artist's most famous paintings paired with lesser-known documents and photographs culled from the archives of his estate. The authors also gathered first-hand accounts related by numerous participants in the Vence and Le Cateau projects. The result is a fascinating, almost day-to-day look at Matisse's process as he created these works, and an intimate portrait of both the artist and the man.AUTHOR BIO: The late René Percheron was head of the museum of national antique art in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France, and a lecturer on the history of art and photography. Christian Brouder is a researcher at CNRS, the national organization for scientific research in Paris. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Very satisfying book
Great photography that puts you inside from many great angles and outside from all around that beautiful space for worship. The description is also interesting, though sometimes too detailed about the process and the back and forth between the interested parties. The photos of HM's process of setting up his hotel rooms as a studio are fascinating, iconic. Also so many photos of details like the priest's vestments he designed, the experimental drawings he did leading up to the final forms and the summary of his early work as it lead into the later glass and architectural work: so well presented, so many large photos...

Offering an intimate portrait of the artist in work and life
Primarily known for his luminous color paintings, the French artist Henri Matisse was also involved in designing stunningly beautiful stained glass windows and even ventured into the realm of architecture as well. Matisse: From Color To Architecture is a seminal work by Rene Percheron and Christian Brouder and the first to focus on these lesser known endeavors by one of France's most renowned painters. Offering an intimate portrait of the artist in work and life with a focus upon Matisse's work in his final years on the Chapel of the Rosary in Vence and the nursery school in his hometown of Le Cateayu-Cambresis (both of these buildings are located in the south of France), this 384 page compendium is enhanced with 396 illustrations (247 of which are in full color) and includes beautiful reproductions of Matisse's most famous paintings drawn from the collections of Centre Georges Pompidou, the Hermitage Museum, the Barnes Foundation, and the National Gallery of Art. These works are paired with documents and photographs culled from the archives of the Matisse estate. Included are first-hand accounts from the participants in the Vence and Le Cateau projects. Matisse: From Color To Architecture is an original and recommended contribution to personal, professional, academic, and community library Art History and Architectural Studies collections.
... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Wonderful
Matisse was as good a sculptor as he was a painter - which is to say, a genius. His work is captured very effectively here in high quality images, in a large format book. It's as good as you can get without standing in front of the originals. There are drawings and paintings that relate to the sculptures, and there are a few images of the sculptures of Degas, Rodin, Maillol and others, which are also very beautiful. The text is also interesting and informative. I have plenty of excellent books on the works of Matisse - this is right up there with the best of them.

Great Book
A no nonsense book on the great sculpture of Matisse.
Lots of images, good printing and photography. Highly
recommended for professionals and the general art loving
public alike. ... Read more

Product Description
The life's work of Matisse in collaboration with Matisse's grandson, Claude Duthuit. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Reproductions are great, text is boring
First and foremost, the reproduction quality is really good.That's the most important thing to look for in a book.I've purchased some books where some of the paintings are horribly reproduced.This isn't the case with this book.I am fortunate enough to live in Paris and I have went to the modern art museum to see the Matisse paintings in person and I am pretty satisified with the quality of the book.

However, the text of the book is disappointing.I really got the impression that the author was just writing to fill in space.I didn't really learn much about his technique or much about him in fact.I quit reading the text half way through and just enjoyed the paintings.

If you are just looking for good reproductions, this is a good book.If you want to learn more about Matisse and the artists of his time, I'd look at a few other books first, maybe you could do better.

A nice journey into Matisse life
If you love Matisse, you will surely like this book. This volume provides a nice balance of biographical and analytical information on Matisse, along with excellent reproductions. ... Read more