Channeling Matisse
Watercolor on Masa Paper, 10.5x15"
This watercolor was done yesterday just preceding the painting which was the subject of my last post. Watercolor is so much faster than oil painting that I could get two paintings out of one session.
I have been a long time admirer of Matisse who, with Picasso, constituted half of the two greatest painters of the first half of the twentieth century. Painting (to my mind, unfortunately) has been supplanted in the high art world by installation. I appreciate really good installation but, there is so much that is mediocre that I walk away with a "so what?" and a "ho hum" more times than not.
I am skills based painter who loves pattern and color. As a consequence I have always gravitated towards Matisse. His pattern and color is so masterful that he has become a standard for painting for me. One of my favorite paintings of his is The Moorish Screen which is housed in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I had only seen it in reproduction until about ten years ago when I saw it at the museum. It is a most gorgeous painting!
Keep channeling, Davida. I love these paintings with the patterns. (I don't really think you're channeling; I think you and Matisse share a love of patterns and textures and know how to use them.)
ReplyDeleteI think I might have seen The Moorish Screen at an exhibit--DC, NY, Raleigh? I have my ticket for the Rembrandt exhibit in Raleigh; I don't think it will be as exciting as the Picasso exhibit in Richmond last year.
Thank you Hallie,
ReplyDeleteIt depends on how long ago you saw the Moorish Screen. There was a huge retrospective at the MOMA in New York in the 90s. I couldn't go to see it. I really regret it. There will never be a retrospective like that again. But I do have a catalog.
There was a Rembrandt show in Chicago at the AIC a few years ago. Mostly of his etchings and drawings. It was very beautiful. Some of those etchings were the size of a large postage stamp and exquisitely done. The show coming your way will be a treat.