‘L’ÎLE AIMÉE - POÉSIES ANTILLAISES’ BY HENRI MATISSE (1946)

HENRI MATISSE (1869–1954) began preparations in 1945 for a suite of lithographs that he hoped to offer en hommage to the French poet John-Antoine Nau (1860–1918). Nau’s verse took its themes from his voyages through the Antilles—in particular his travels to Martinique. The idea was to create a series of portraits of Martinquaise women to complement Nau’s work. Trial impressions of 27 drawings were printed; however, there were long delays in producing the text, and Matisse died before the project could be finished. Happily, it was resurrected by Paris lithographer Fernand Mourlot (1895–1988) and completed in 1972. A wonderful example of Matisse’s extraordinary draughtsmanship. Gallery COA provided. HENRI ÉMILE BENÔIT MATISSE was an influential and revolutionary artist of the early 20th century—best known for the expressive color and form of his Fauvist style. Born to a grain merchant in northern France, he initially pursued the law and worked for a time as a clerk. At the age of 21, wh