Henri Matisse

The Pewter Jug

1917

Scroll

Henri Matisse

The Pewter Jug

Henri Matisse

The Pewter Jug

1917

Physical Qualities Oil on canvas, Unframed: 36 3/8 × 25 1/2 × 1 1/8 in. (92.4 × 64.8 × 2.9 cm.) Framed: 35 5/8 × 46 5/8 × 2 7/8 in. (90.5 × 118.4 × 7.3 cm.)

Credit Line The Cone Collection, formed by Dr. Claribel Cone and Miss Etta Cone of Baltimore, Maryland

Object Number 1950.230

The focal point of this ambitious still life is a pewter jug that appears in a number of Matisse’s paintings, including Purple Robe with Anemones (1937), also in the Cone Collection. “I have worked all my life before the same objects,” he admitted in 1952. “The object is an actor: a good actor can have a part in ten different plays; an object can play a different role in ten different pictures.” In this work, the pewter jug links the carefully depicted still life in the foreground, consisting of a scalloped ceramic dish, glass, and fruit, with the more generalized and curvilinear drapery in the background.

The Baltimore Museum of Art by bequest, 1949; Etta Cone, Baltimore, by bequest, 1929; Claribel Cone, Baltimore, by purchase, 1922, 1927 or 1928; Georges Bernheim, Paris

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "An Exhibition of Modern French Art", January 9-February 1, 1925, no. 68.

Adelyn D. Breeskin, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Cone Collection of Modern Paintings and Sculpture", April 1-December 1, 1930, no. 27.

Galeries Georges Petit, Paris, "Henri-Matisse", June 16 - July 25, 1931, no. 418. (exhibited as Le Pot d'Étain")

Alfred H. Barr, Jr., The Museum of Modern Art, New York, "Henri Matisse Retrospective Exhibition", November 3-December 6, 1931, no. 44. (exhibited as "Pewter Vase")

"Henri-Matisse", Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland, August 9-September 15, 1931, no. 45. (exhibited as "Le Pot d'étain")

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Cone Collection", May 12-October 1, 1934.

Adelyn Breeskin, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Century of Baltimore Collecting 1840-1940", June 6-September 1, 1941.

Adelyn D. Breeskin, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Still Life and Flower Paintings", November 2-December 9, 1945, no. 65.

Henry Clifford, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, "Henri Matisse", April 3-May 9, 1948, no. 30. (exhibited as "The Pewter Vase")

Gertrude Rosenthal, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Selections from the Cone Collection", October 7-December 31, 1949, no. 32.

Andrew Carnduff Ritchie and Monroe Wheeler, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, "Henri Matisse", November 13, 1951-January 13, 1952, no. 42; circulated to The Cleveland Museum of Art, February 5-March 16, 1952; The Art Institute of Chicago, April 1-May 4, 1952; The San Francisco Museum of Art, May 22-July 6, 1952.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Cone Collection", circulated to The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond,October 23-November 22, 1953.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Cone Collection", circulated to M. Knoedler & Company, New York, January 24-February 19, 1955.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Twenty-Five Years of Growth", May 29-August 31, 1955.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Cone Collection", circulated to The Woman's College of the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, October 21-November 4, 1955.

The UCLA Art Council and the UCLA Art Galleries, UCLA Art Galleries, "Henri Matisse", January 5-February 27, 1966, no. 46; circulated to The Art Institute of Chicago, March 11-April 24, 1966; The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, May 11-June 26, 1966.

Alicia Legg and Monroe Wheeler, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, "Henri Matisse 64 Paintings", July 12-September 25, 1966, no. 36.

Acquavella Galleries, New York, "Henri Matisse", November 2-December 1, 1973, no. 13. (exhibited as "Nature Morte avec le Pot d'Étain")

Jane Harrison Cone, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Cone Collection from The Baltimore Museum of Art", circulated to Wildenstein and Company, New York, March 29-May 4, 1974, no. 18.

Brenda Richardson, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse in the Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art", circulated to The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, August 24-October 14, 1979.

William R. Johnston, The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, "The Taste of Maryland: Art Collecting in Maryland, 1800-1934", May 18-August 19, 1984, no. 84.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Masterpieces from the Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art", circulated to The Los Angeles County Museum of Art,October 6-November 24, 1985; Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, December 14, 1985-February 9, 1986.

Jack Cowart and Dominique Fourcade, The National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, "Henri Matisse: The Early Years in Nice, 1916-1930", November 2, 1986-March 29, 1987, no. 22. (exhibited as "Le pot d'etain/The Pewter Jug")

Brenda Richardson, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse, Picasso and Impressionist Masters from the Cone Collection", circulated to The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, October 2, 1991-January 19, 1992.

John Elderfield with Beatrice Kernan, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, "Henri Matisse: A Retrospective", September 24, 1992-January 19, 1993, no. 212.

Brenda Richardson, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Van Gogh to Matisse: Impressionist and Modern Masters from the Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art", circulated to The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, November 21, 1993-January 30, 1994.

Brain Trust Inc., Isetan Museum of Art, Tokyo, "Matisse and Modern Masters from the Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art", October 3-December 28, 1996, no. 8; circulated to the Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, January 8-February 11, 1997.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse from The Baltimore Museum of Art", circulated to The Denver Art Museum, March 11-June 25, 2000; Birmingham Museum of Art, July 23-September 17, 2000; The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, October 10-January 28, 2001.

Katherine Rothkopf, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Matisse Picasso and the School of Paris: Masterpieces from The Baltimore Museum of Art featuring Selections from the Collection of Etta and Claribel Cone", circulated to North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh October 10, 2004-January 16, 2005; The Naples Museum of Art, Naples, Florida (as "Matisse, Picasso and Friends: Impressionism to Surrealism, Masterworks of Painting and Sculpture from The Baltimore Museum of Art)," February 5-May 1, 2005; The Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville (as "Matisse, Picasso, and the School of Paris: Masterpieces from The Baltimore Museum of Art"), March 2-June 3, 2007.

"Collecting Matisse and the Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters", The Jewish Museum May 11, 2011-September 25, 2011, circulating to The Vancouver Art Gallery, May 11, 2011-September 25, 2011, The Nasher Museum of Art November 1, 2012-February 10, 2012.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, "Matisse/Diebenkorn", The Baltimore Museum of Art, October 23, 2016-January 29, 2017. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, March 11, 2017-May 29, 2017.

"Baltimore Women Own Large Collection of Matisse Works," "The Baltimore Sun," December 14, 1924, p. M20.

"An Exhibition of Modern French Art," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1925, p. 11, no. 68.

Katherine Scarborough, "Baltimore Collection Widely Known: Dr. Claribel Cone's Art Pieces are of International Note," "The Baltimore Sun," April 15, 1928, p. SM20.

"The Cone Collection," "News-Record of The Baltimore Museum of Art," April 1930, vol. 3, no. 1, n.p., ill.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Cone Collection of Modern Paintings and Sculpture," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1930, p. 5, no. 27.

Henry McBride, "Matisse," New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930, no. 47, ill. (published as "Deux pêches et un verre dans une assiette et pot")

"Henri-Matisse," Basel, Switzerland: Kunsthalle Basel, 1931, p. 12, no. 45, ill. (published as "Le Pot d'étain")

"Henri-Matisse," Paris: Galeries Georges Petit, 1931, p. 23, no. 48. (published as Le Pot d'étain")

Karel Asplund, "Henri-Matisse," "Cahiers d'art," 1931, p. 79, nos. 5-6, fig. 67, ill. (published as "Le Pot d'Étain")

Alfred H. Barr, Jr., "Henri Matisse Retrospective Exhibition," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1931, pp. 19, 49, no. 44. (published as "Pewter Vase")

Carl Einstein, "Die Kunst des 20. Jahrhunderts," Berlin: Im Propyläen, 1931, p. 238, ill. (published as "Stilleben")

M. I. C., "Art-Matisse and Picasso, Leaders of Today's Modernists," "The Baltimore Sun," February 12, 1933, p. 6.

Etta Cone, "The Cone Collection of Baltimore-Maryland," Baltimore: Etta Cone, 1934, p. 24, pl. 33, ill. (published as "Le Pot d'Étain")

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Century of Baltimore Collecting 1840-1940," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1941, p. 84.

Adelyn D. Breeskin, "Still Life and Flower Paintings," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1945, pp. 19, 26, no. 65, ill.

Louis Aragon, Henry Clifford, and Henri Matisse, "Henri Matisse: Retrospective Exhibition of Paintings, Drawings and Sculpture," Philadelphia: The Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1948, p. 38, no. 30, ill. (published as "The Pewter Vase")

"Baltimore Inherits the Cone Collection of Modern Art," "The Art Digest," October 1, 1949, vol. 24, no. 1, p. 24.

Gertrude Rosenthal, "Selections from the Cone Collection," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1949, pp. 14, 17, no. 32, ill.

"$3,000,000 Art Collection," "Look," April 25, 1950, vol. 14, no. 9, p. 110, ill.

Doris Brian, "The Baltimore Museum's Cone Collection: A Pointed Star," "The Art Digest," January 15, 1950, vol. 24, no. 8, p. 21, ill.

Alfred H. Barr, Jr., "Matisse: His Art and His Public," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1951, pp. 194, 409, 557, 575, 586, ill.

Clive Bell, "Modern French Painting: The Cone Collection," Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1951, pp. 4, 11.

Andrew Carnduff Ritchie, Monroe Wheeler, and Alfred H. Barr, Jr., "Henri Matisse," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1951, p. 10, no. 42.

E. Tériade, "Matisse Speaks," "Art News Annual," XXI, 1952, p. 64, ill.

Gaston Diehl, "Henri Matisse," Paris: Éditions Pierre Tisné, 1954, p. 69. (published as "Nature morte au pot d'étain")

Kenneth B. Sawyer, "The Miracle of Matisse," "The Baltimore Sun," December 12, 1954, p. A3, ill.

"Matisse: A Rare Collection Record," "Vogue," March 1, 1955, vol. 125, pp. 132, 135, ill.

George Boas, Adelyn Breeskin, and Gertrude Rosenthal, "Cone Collection: A Handbook with a Catalogue of Paintings and Sculpture," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1955, pp. 32, 34, no. 45, ill.

Gertrude Rosenthal, "A Picture Book: 200 Objects in The Baltimore Museum of Art," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1955, p. 61, ill.

"The Cone Wing," "News of The Baltimore Museum of Art," February 1957, p. 7, ill.

Jacques Lassaigne, "Matisse," Geneva: Skira, 1959, pp. 89, 91, 138, p. 91, ill.

Jean Selz, "Matisse," Paris: Flammarion, 1964, pp. 42, 43, ill. (published as Le Pot d'Etain")

Lawrence Gowing, "Henri Matisse 64 Paintings," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1966, pp. 40, 52, no. 36, ill.

Jean Leymarie, Herbert Read and William S. Lieberman, "Henri Matisse," Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1966, pp. 15, 76, 188, no. 46, ill.

Alfred Werner, "The Earthly Paradise of Henri Matisse," "Arts Magazine," January 1966, vol. 40, no.3, p. 33, ill.

George Boas, Adelyn Breeskin, and Gertrude Rosenthal, "Paintings, Sculpture, and Drawings in the Cone Collection," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1967, pp. 43, 66, no. 42, ill.

Jean Guichard-Meili, "Matisse," New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1967, p. 251, no. 208.

Jean Guichard-Meili, "Henri Matisse, Son Oeuvre, Son Univers," Paris: Fernand Hazan Editeur, 1967, pp. 202, 249, fig. 208, ill. (published as "Le pot d'étain")

John Russell, "The World of Matisse 1869-1954," New York: Time-Life Books, 1969, pp. 85, 189, ill.

Louis Aragon, "Henri Matisse, Roman II," Paris: Éditions Gallimard, 1971, pp. 239-241, 361, pl. XXXVI, ill. (published as "Le Pot d'étain")

Massimo Carrà and Mario Luzi, "L'opera di Matisse dalla rivolta 'fauve' all'intimismo 1904-1928," Milan: Rizzoli, 1971, pp. 95, 96, 113, 114, no. 238, ill. (published as "Natura morta con vaso di peltro")

Aragon, Louis. Henri Matisse: A Novel, Vol. I. First American edition. Translated by Jean Stewart. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1972, p. 240, ill.

Clement Greenberg, "Henri Matisse," New York: Acquavella Galleries, Inc., 1973, no. 13, ill. (published as "Nature Morte avec le Pot d'Étain")

The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Cone Collection from The Baltimore Museum of Art: A Benefit Exhibition at Wildenstein," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1974, no. 18.

Pierre Schneider, Massimo Carrà and Xavier Derying, "Tout l ‘Oeuvre Peint de Matisse 1904-1928," Paris: Flammarion, 1982, pp. 95-96, 115, no. 238, ill. (published as "Nature morte au vase d'étain")

William R. Johnston, "The Taste of Maryland: Art Collecting in Maryland 1800-1934," Baltimore: The Walters Art Gallery, 1984, pp. 48-49, no. 84, ill.

Brenda Richardson, "Dr. Claribel & Miss Etta: The Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1985, pp. 94, 104, 162, 170, 197, 200, ill.

Jack Cowart and Dominique Fourcade, "Henri Matisse The Early Years in Nice 1916-1930," New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1987, pp. 78-79, 234, 282, 333, no. 22, ill. (published as "Le pot d'etain/ The Pewter Jug")

Jacqueline and Maurice Guillaud, "Matisse: Le Rythme et la Ligne," Paris: Guillaud Editions, 1987, pp. 71, 645, no. 83, ill. (published as "Nature morte au vase d'étain")

Bernier, Rosamond. Matisse, Picasso, Miró: As I Knew Them. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1991, page 50.

Alicia Faxon, "The Shock of Recognition," "Art New England," December 1991-January 1992, p. 31.

John Elderfield, "Henri Matisse: A Retrospective," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1992, pp. 282, 478, no. 212, ill.

"Modern-Art Exhibit Typifies Symbiotic Relationship," "Beaumont Enterprise," December 17, 1993, p. 4, ill.

Susan Chadwick, "Make it an Artful Holiday," "The Houston Post," December 26, 1993, p. H-16, ill.

Susie Kalil, "The Joy of Color, the Ecstasy of Form," "Houston Press," December 23, 1993, p. 27.

Guy-Patrice and Michel Dauberville, "Henri Matisse Chez Bernheim-Jeune, vols. 1-2" Paris: Éditions Bernheim-Jeune, 1995, pp. 627, 1434, no. 211, ill. (published as "Les pêches")

Nobuyuki Senzoku and Akira Tomita, "Matisse and Modern Masters from the Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," Tokyo: Brain Trust Inc., 1996, pp. 51, 158, no. 8, ill.

Charles Darwent, "Double Vision," "The Independent," June 17, 2001, p. 20, ill.

Jack Flam, "Matisse in the Cone Collection: The Poetics of Vision," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2001, pp. 48-49, pl. 14, ill.

Ellen B. Hirschland and Nancy Hirschland Ramage, "The Cone Sisters of Baltimore: Collecting at Full Tilt," Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 2008, pp. 95, 96, 165, 215, 277, fig. 5.4, ill.

Douglas L. Frost, "MICA: Making History/Making Art," Baltimore: Maryland Institute College of Art, 2010, p. 135, ill.

Karen Levitov, "Collecting Matisse and Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore," New York: The Jewish Museum, 2011, p. 19, ill.

Bois, Yve-Alain, ed. Matisse in the Barnes Foundation, vol. 2. Philadelphia: Barnes Foundation, 2015, p. 232, fig. 1.

"Henri Matisse: Une palette d'objets," Musée Matisse: Nice, 2016, p. 36, color ill. (fig. 7).

Bishop, Janet and Katy Rothkopf eds. Matisse/Diebenkorn. New York: Prestel, 2016.

Inscribed: Recto: Lower left in black paint, "Henri Matisse" Verso: The painting has been wax lined and there are no visible inscriptions. Frame Inscriptions: Verso: Bottom on right vertical rail, square white label in black print, "WALTERS ART GALLERY/___ 31.1984/6/BALTIMORE" Top on left vertical rail in red ink, "14646" Top horizontal rail in black grease pencil, "X" Bottom horizontal rail in black grease pencil, "X"