Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse is regarded as the greatest colorist of the 20th century and a rival to Pablo Picasso in the importance of his innovations. He emerged as a Post-Impressionist and became the leader of the French movement Fauvism. Matisse rejected his interest in Cubism and instead sought to use color as the foundation for expressive, decorative, and often monumental paintings. As he once controversially wrote, he sought to create an art that would be “a soothing, calming influence on the mind, rather like a good armchair.” Still life and the nude remained favorite subjects throughout his career; North Africa was also an important inspiration, and, towards the end of his life, he made an important contribution to collage with a series of works using cut-out shapes of color. He is also highly regarded as a sculptor. (The Art Story)