Henri Matisse
Small Black Woodcut
1906
Scroll
Henri Matisse
Small Black Woodcut
1906
Physical Qualities
Woodcut, Sheet: 460 x 287 mm. (18 1/8 x 11 5/16 in.)
Image: 310 x 220 mm. (12 3/16 x 8 11/16 in.)
Credit Line
The Cone Collection, formed by Dr. Claribel Cone and Miss Etta Cone of Baltimore, Maryland
Object Number
1950.12.235
Small Black Woodcut features a nude female figure seated at the edge of a chair with her hands folded in her lap. Due to the thickness of the carving of the block, the woman’s facial expression is not entirely clear. Instead, Henri Matisse has focused his attention to detail by surrounding her with a bevy of lines, dashes, and curves.
Although a prolific printmaker who created more than 800 works throughout his career, Matisse only produced four woodcuts, all of them featuring nude women. Unlike his fellow Fauves, Matisse used a professional printer for his woodcuts, who made editions of 50 for three of the four images, including this one. Matisse showed Small Black Woodcut,
along with two other examples, in exhibitions in 1906 and 1907.
Museums at Sunrise, Charleston, WV, "Early Figurative Works of Henri Matisse," 1 August - 18 September 1980.
Davis Museum and Cultural Center, Wellesley College, "Modern Hieroglyphs: Gestural Drawing and The European Vanguard 1900-1918," 27 January - 19 March 1995; The Equitable Gallery, New York, 28 March - 6 May 1995.
Jay Fisher, BMA, "Matisse, Picasso and Friends: Masterworks on Paper from The Cone Collection," 7 June - 27 August, 1995.
Jay Fisher, "Matisse, Picasso and Friends: Masterworks on Paper from the Cone Collection," The Cleveland Museum of Art, 17 November, 1996 - 19 January, 1997; Seattle Art Museum 20 February - 20 April, 1997; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston 18 May - 13 July, 1997.
Timothy O. Benson, "Expressionism in Germany and France: From Van Gogh to Kandinsky," Los Angeles County Museum of Art, June 8 - September 14, 2014, and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, October 6-January 15, 2015, exh cat. no. 154.
Katy Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Wild Forms: Fauve Woodcuts," May 14 - October 15, 2023.
Davis Museum and Cultural Center, Wellesley College, "Modern Hieroglyphs: Gestural Drawing and The European Vanguard 1900-1918," 27 January - 19 March 1995; The Equitable Gallery, New York, 28 March - 6 May 1995.
Jay Fisher, BMA, "Matisse, Picasso and Friends: Masterworks on Paper from The Cone Collection," 7 June - 27 August, 1995.
Jay Fisher, "Matisse, Picasso and Friends: Masterworks on Paper from the Cone Collection," The Cleveland Museum of Art, 17 November, 1996 - 19 January, 1997; Seattle Art Museum 20 February - 20 April, 1997; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston 18 May - 13 July, 1997.
Timothy O. Benson, "Expressionism in Germany and France: From Van Gogh to Kandinsky," Los Angeles County Museum of Art, June 8 - September 14, 2014, and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, October 6-January 15, 2015, exh cat. no. 154.
Katy Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Wild Forms: Fauve Woodcuts," May 14 - October 15, 2023.
Inscribed: Recto: at lower left, in graphite: "17/50"; at lower right, in graphite: "Henri Matisse";' Verso: at lower right, in graphite: "17/50"
Markings: WM: Van Gelder Zonen
