Cantor Arts Center presents Matisse Jazz an exhibition on view July 31–September 22, 2013.
Henri Matisse, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, refused to leave France after the outbreak of World War II. In 1940 German forces overtook Paris, and his daughter and son participated in the resistance movement. In 1941 Matisse was diagnosed with cancer and became bedridden following surgery. His household moved from the city of Nice in 1943 to escape the threat of Allied bombing. That same year, at the age of 74, Matisse began Jazz, a much-celebrated portfolio of works characterized by brilliant colors, poetic texts and joyful circus and theater themes. All 20 prints from the edition of Jazz are on display at the Cantor Arts Center from July 31 to September 22.
The works represent the great artist’s lifelong unflagging creativity. Limited in his mobility, Matisse could not paint or sculpt. Instead, he cut out forms from colored papers that he arranged as collages. His assistants then prepared the collages for printing in a stencil process referred to by the French term pochoir. Matisse worked on the series for two years, with the act of cutting shapes from brightly colored sheets of paper linking in a single process both drawing and color, two important elements in Matisse’s work.
The Cantor is open Wednesday–Sunday, 11 am–5 pm, Thursday until 8 pm and is located on the Stanford campus, off Palm Drive at Museum Way. Parking is free on weekends and after 4 pm weekdays. Information: 650-723-4177, museum.stanford.edu
