John Klein, ULTIMATE METHOD OR ULTIMATE MATERIALS? – Matisse Symposium
Channel: Barnes Foundation
Date: 2016-11-21

Matisse's paper cut-outs are often hailed as the culmination of his devotion to color. But the purpose of most of the large-scale cut-outs was to design architectural decorations in what the artist called "ultimate materials," including stained glass, ceramic, and tapestry. At once artworks and potential designs, Matisse's cut-outs are richer for this duality.

John Klein is professor of art history at Washington University in St. Louis. He is the author of Matisse Portraits (Yale, 2001) and many articles and book chapters on the artist's work. His book The Essential Quality of Art: Matisse's Late Decorations is forthcoming from Yale University Press. 

Inspired by the Foundation’s catalogue Matisse in the Barnes Foundation (http://bit.ly/MatisseBarnes), edited by Yve-Alain Bois and published in December 2015, this symposium brings together leading international scholars to examine Matisse in the context of the history of modernism.