Henri Matisse
Reclining Odalisque with Checkerboard
1927 or 1928
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Henri Matisse
Reclining Odalisque with Checkerboard
1927 or 1928
Physical Qualities
Pen and black ink with scraping on paper, Sheet: 384 × 506 mm. (15 1/8 × 19 15/16 in.)
Mat: 22 × 28 in. (55.9 × 71.1 cm.)
Credit Line
The Cone Collection, formed by Dr. Claribel Cone and Miss Etta Cone of Baltimore, Maryland
Object Number
1950.12.46
In Matisse’s paintings of odalisques of the late 1920s, decorative patterns become the dominant visual feature. Dense decoration on walls, floors, and the fabric coverings of chairs and beds nearly subsume the figure. At the same time, Matisse made a large pen and ink drawing of a different odalisque reclining next to a checkerboard. As in his simple line etchings, there is no shading here. In all parts of the drawing—from the elaborate wallpaper in the background, to the patterned blouse of the figure at midground, or the still-life in the foreground—line always carries equal weight, bringing everything to the surface of the paper.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by bequest, 1949; Etta Cone, Baltimore; purchased from Galerie Rosengart, Lucerne, 1937; Rosengart from Matisse, August 19, 1937 (see Angela Rosengart's letter)
Katy Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Collecting Matisse and Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore," circulated to The Jewish Museum, New York, 6 May - 25 September 2011, Vancouver Art Gallery, 2 June-23 September 2012, Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, 3 November 2012 - 10 February 2013.
Jay Fisher, American Federation of the Arts, "Matisse as Printmaker," The Baltimore Museum of Art, October 25, 2009 - January 3,2010; circulating to The Tampa Museum of Art, January 29, 2010 - April 10, 2010, and Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton, October 29, 2010 - February 13, 2011.
Katy Rothkopf, "Matisse, Picasso and the School of Paris," circulated to North Carolina Museum of Art, October 10, 2004 - January 16, 2005, and the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, March 2 - June 3, 2007.
Kimberly Schenck, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse: Drawing Defined," 21 August - 10 November 2002.
Katy Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Grand Reopening of the Cone Collection," 22 April - 22 July 2001.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, The Denver Art Museum, "Matisse from The Baltimore Museum of Art," March 11, 2000 - June 25, 2000; circulated to the Birmingham Museum of Art, July 23, 2000 - September 17, 2000; The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, October 10, 2000 - January 28, 2001.
"Matisse and Modern Masters from The Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," Isetan Museum of Art, Tokyo, 3 October - 28 December, 1996; Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, 8 January - 11 February, 1997.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Spirited Line," 7 September - 2 November 1986.
National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, "Matisse Exhibition," 20 March - 17 May 1981; traveled to National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, 26 May - 19 July 1981, cat. no. 122.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, NY, "Matisse in the Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," 24 August - 14 October 1979.
The Wildenstein Gallery, NY, "Cone Collection from The Baltimore Museum of Art: A Benefit Exhibition at Wildenstein, New York," 29 March - 11 May 1974.
Victor Carlson, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse as Draughtsman," 12 January - 21 February 1971, traveled to California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 20 March - 9 May 1971, The Art Institute of Chicago, 26 May - 10 July 1971, cat. no. 46.
Katy Rothkopf and Leslie Cozzi, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Modern Influence: Henry Matisse, Etta Cone, and Baltimore," October 3, 2021 - January 2, 2022.
Jay Fisher, American Federation of the Arts, "Matisse as Printmaker," The Baltimore Museum of Art, October 25, 2009 - January 3,2010; circulating to The Tampa Museum of Art, January 29, 2010 - April 10, 2010, and Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton, October 29, 2010 - February 13, 2011.
Katy Rothkopf, "Matisse, Picasso and the School of Paris," circulated to North Carolina Museum of Art, October 10, 2004 - January 16, 2005, and the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, March 2 - June 3, 2007.
Kimberly Schenck, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse: Drawing Defined," 21 August - 10 November 2002.
Katy Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Grand Reopening of the Cone Collection," 22 April - 22 July 2001.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, The Denver Art Museum, "Matisse from The Baltimore Museum of Art," March 11, 2000 - June 25, 2000; circulated to the Birmingham Museum of Art, July 23, 2000 - September 17, 2000; The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, October 10, 2000 - January 28, 2001.
"Matisse and Modern Masters from The Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," Isetan Museum of Art, Tokyo, 3 October - 28 December, 1996; Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, 8 January - 11 February, 1997.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Spirited Line," 7 September - 2 November 1986.
National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, "Matisse Exhibition," 20 March - 17 May 1981; traveled to National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, 26 May - 19 July 1981, cat. no. 122.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, NY, "Matisse in the Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," 24 August - 14 October 1979.
The Wildenstein Gallery, NY, "Cone Collection from The Baltimore Museum of Art: A Benefit Exhibition at Wildenstein, New York," 29 March - 11 May 1974.
Victor Carlson, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse as Draughtsman," 12 January - 21 February 1971, traveled to California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 20 March - 9 May 1971, The Art Institute of Chicago, 26 May - 10 July 1971, cat. no. 46.
Katy Rothkopf and Leslie Cozzi, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Modern Influence: Henry Matisse, Etta Cone, and Baltimore," October 3, 2021 - January 2, 2022.
Musée Cantini. 130 dessins de Matisse: [exposition], Musée Cantini, juin - septembre 1974. Marseille: Musée Cantini, 1974, cat no. 32 (published as “Odalisque au jeu d’echec”).
The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, ed., Matisse: 20 March - 17 May, 1981, the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo: 26 May - 19 July, 1981, the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto. Tokyo: National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, 1981, pp. 233, no. 122 (published as "Odalisque seated by Checkerboard”)
Senzoku, Nobuyuki, ed. Matisse and Modern Masters from the Cone Collection of the Baltimore Museum of Art = Kon korekushon ten. [Tokyo]: "Kon Korekushon" Ten Katarogu Iinkai, 1996, page 102, no. 47.
Jack Flam, "Matisse in The Cone Collection The Poetics of Vision," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2001, pl. 32, p.75, ill.
Karen Levitov, "Collecting Matisse and Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore," New York: The Jewish Museum, 2011, pp. 62, 76, pl. 40, ill.
Cozzi, Leslie and Katherine Rothkopf (eds). "A Modern Influence: Henri Matisse, Etta Cone, and Baltimore." Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2021. ill.
Inscribed: lower right in black ink: "Henri Matisse"
Markings: Watermark: ARCHES
