As part of the exhibition “Matisse, 1941–1954,” which highlights Matisse’s later years at the Grand Palais, this symposium examines the major turning point represented by this final creative period—a decisive phase in the career and reception of an artist whose legacy continues to this day.
In January 1941, Henri Matisse entered a “second life” after narrowly escaping death. He revitalized his practice by developing the technique of cut-out gouaches, which allowed him to fully express the decorative and architectural dimensions of his art. Over the course of thirteen highly prolific years, he found a form of fulfillment in the creation of monumental works—the Chapel of Vence, stained-glass windows, tapestries, and wall hangings—which established him as a major figure in the history of 20th-century Western art.
Particular attention is paid to the context—his health issues, World War II and its impact on the art market, the inclusion of his works in national collections—as well as to the Jazz album, a pivotal project examined through the lens of Matisse’s connection to music and his lasting influence on the work of artists who discovered him in the 1950s.
