André Derain, Madame Matisse au kimono. Oil on canvas. 1905
In 1905, Henri Matisse and his friend Andre Derain both painted Matisse’s wife Amélie in her Japanese kimono. The two artist’s works are similar, yet with some interesting differences. While Derain divided the canvas into swatches of color, he described the face in a more formal manner. In the other painting, Matisse has divided the canvas into swatches of pattern, and the figure takes no importance over the background, the surface is equally patterned with brushstrokes, more abstracted. They both use the figure to make a diagonal line from upper left towards the lower right / center, and they both use the same palette of colors. In Derain’s painting, the blue lines of the kimono swim within the white, while the rest of the surface of the painting is solid. In Matisse’s painting, the lines of the kimono swim within the white, and that seems to have influenced the pattern treatment for the entire canvas, each brushstroke surrounded by the white of the canvas.
Henri Matisse, Woman beside the Water Collioure, 1905
Madame Matisse, by Henri Matisse, 1905
Henri Matisse paints Amélie again, this time as a “Woman in a (different) Kimono” 1906-ish
Brushstrokes
I’ve heard from several students that Brushstrokes is one of the best classes they’ve ever taken. I offer it once a year, and there’s a class starting next week. There are still a few spots if you’d like to jump in on Thursdays 6-10pm. Not a night person? No problem. I do the lesson at the beginning of class, so you can get all of the lesson info and still get to bed early. You can even email me pictures of your work in the morning, and get feedback.
Exercise your creativity This SAL Challenge is a vocabulary based creative challenge every day for January. Materials are artist’s choice. You can draw, paint, sew, collage, sculpt your food, anything you want. See below for today’s creative challenge. Set the timer for 20 minutes and see what happens. TONDO At my recent artist’s talk, Suzanne …
This is one in a series of posts showcasing work made by students in the League’s online classes. We have now been in quarantine for twelve months. In the last year, the League has grown in numbers, and our artistic voice as a school has evolved. We started working with Special Guest Star Fran O’Neill …
Yesterday I talked about trace monotypes: “Trace monotypes are made by laying paper down on an inked piece of plexiglass, then drawing a design on the back of the paper. The drawing tool presses the paper against the ink, making a dark line on the front of the paper.” – Ruthie V, circa yesterday Today …
For the last two weeks I’ve had the benefit of learning from Carlos San Millan. He is a generous painter. What took a while for me to grasp at first is now coming into form, and soon will be a V. Note. In the meantime, I wanted to send out some new painters. In the …
Madame Matisse and the blue and white kimono
André Derain, Madame Matisse au kimono. Oil on canvas. 1905
In 1905, Henri Matisse and his friend Andre Derain both painted Matisse’s wife Amélie in her Japanese kimono. The two artist’s works are similar, yet with some interesting differences. While Derain divided the canvas into swatches of color, he described the face in a more formal manner. In the other painting, Matisse has divided the canvas into swatches of pattern, and the figure takes no importance over the background, the surface is equally patterned with brushstrokes, more abstracted. They both use the figure to make a diagonal line from upper left towards the lower right / center, and they both use the same palette of colors. In Derain’s painting, the blue lines of the kimono swim within the white, while the rest of the surface of the painting is solid. In Matisse’s painting, the lines of the kimono swim within the white, and that seems to have influenced the pattern treatment for the entire canvas, each brushstroke surrounded by the white of the canvas.
Henri Matisse, Woman beside the Water Collioure, 1905
Madame Matisse, by Henri Matisse, 1905
Henri Matisse paints Amélie again, this time as a “Woman in a (different) Kimono” 1906-ish
Brushstrokes
I’ve heard from several students that Brushstrokes is one of the best classes they’ve ever taken. I offer it once a year, and there’s a class starting next week. There are still a few spots if you’d like to jump in on Thursdays 6-10pm. Not a night person? No problem. I do the lesson at the beginning of class, so you can get all of the lesson info and still get to bed early. You can even email me pictures of your work in the morning, and get feedback.
Related Posts
SAL Challenge 13: TONDO
Exercise your creativity This SAL Challenge is a vocabulary based creative challenge every day for January. Materials are artist’s choice. You can draw, paint, sew, collage, sculpt your food, anything you want. See below for today’s creative challenge. Set the timer for 20 minutes and see what happens. TONDO At my recent artist’s talk, Suzanne …
Online Anniversary Show: Fran O’Neill, Part 3
This is one in a series of posts showcasing work made by students in the League’s online classes. We have now been in quarantine for twelve months. In the last year, the League has grown in numbers, and our artistic voice as a school has evolved. We started working with Special Guest Star Fran O’Neill …
Monotype, positive/negative
Yesterday I talked about trace monotypes: “Trace monotypes are made by laying paper down on an inked piece of plexiglass, then drawing a design on the back of the paper. The drawing tool presses the paper against the ink, making a dark line on the front of the paper.” – Ruthie V, circa yesterday Today …
Sangram Majumdar
For the last two weeks I’ve had the benefit of learning from Carlos San Millan. He is a generous painter. What took a while for me to grasp at first is now coming into form, and soon will be a V. Note. In the meantime, I wanted to send out some new painters. In the …