Henri Matisse (1869 - 1954) Femme et bouquets, March 1940 Signed and dated ‘H Matisse 1940’ (lower left corner) Pencil on paper 52,5 x 40,5 cm - 20.7 x 15.9 in. Provenance Lynn G. Epsteen, New York Acquired from the above by the family of the present owner (Sept. 1981) Literature Pierre Schneider, Matisse, London, 1984, p. 148, ill. p. 149 Certificate Wanda de Guébriant has confirmed the authenticity of this work Public notes This drawing is a perfect example of the marriage of two of Matisse’s most beloved subjects: women and flowers. There has often been a close connection between the artist’s treatment of the female form and flowers. As Jack Flam has noted: ‘‘Matisse not only draws parallels between women and plants, but also exchanges some of their characteristics, giving plant forms a vivid sense of animation and at times virtually transforming women into plant forms’’ (Matisse’s Drawings: Themes and Variations, A Book and A Method, Henri Matisse Zeichnungen und gouaches découpées, exh. cat, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, 1993, p. 130). With this piece, Matisse places the woman and the flowers side-by-side, using the latter not as an artificial, decorative prop, but as a parallel image of natural, feminine beauty, implying both subjects share such an essential life force.
62