Henri Matisse
The Yellow Dress
1928-1930
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Henri Matisse
The Yellow Dress
1928-1930
Physical Qualities
Oil on canvas, Unframed: 39 9/16 × 32 1/8 in. (100.5 × 81.6 cm.)
Framed: 48 3/8 × 41 1/8 × 3 1/2 in. (122.9 × 104.5 × 8.9 cm.)
Credit Line
The Cone Collection, formed by Dr. Claribel Cone and Miss Etta Cone of Baltimore, Maryland
Object Number
1950.256
Matisse painted women in interiors throughout the 1920s, but The Yellow Dress can be seen as a major change in his style. The painting combines the familiar elements of the Nice works—patterned floors and walls and shuttered windows—with an assertively monumental pose and central position for the figure.
Etta Cone purchased this work in 1932. When she went to Matisse’s studio the following year on one of her regular trips to Paris, he had no canvases to offer her because he was busy with other projects. However, he did not disappoint her. On her arrival, she recalled: “He [Matisse] said, ‘I have a surprise for you’ & presently I turned & there sat the model in the yellow taffeta dress with the large yellow hat on, just in front of the window—the exact reproduction of my latest painting. His bed-room (which is his studio when he is well) was the scene of this picture. Needless to say I was thrilled.”
Publication References
René Huyghe, "Matisse and Colour," "Formes," January 1930, no. 1, p. 10.
"To Be Seen in America" "The New York Herald," November 19, 1932, ill. (Published as "Young Woman in Yellow Dress")
"International 1933," New York: College Art Association, 1933, pp. 18, 25, no. 81, ill. (Published as "Young Girl in a Yellow Dress")
"Baltimore Sees 52 Works by Henri Matisse," "Art Digest," September 1, 1934, vol. VIII, no. 20, p. 20. (Published as "Girl in the Yellow Dress")
Etta Cone, "The Cone Collection of Baltimore-Maryland," Baltimore: Etta Cone, 1934, p. 24, pl. 56, ill. (Published as "Jeune Fille en Robe Jaune")
"Cahiers d'Art," nos. 1-4, 1935, p. 17, ill. (Published as "Figure, 1929-1931")
Roger Fry, "Henri-Matisse," Paris: Éditions des Chroniques du Jour, 1935, no. 48, ill. (Published as "Portrait de Jeune Fille [Robe Jaune]")
"Les Maitres de l'Art Indépendent 1895-1937," Paris: Arts ete Métièrs Graphiques, 1937, p. 36, no. 4. (Published as "Jeune Fille en Robe Jaune")
Raymond Escholier, "Henri Matisse: 68 Reproductions dont 8 en Couleurs," Paris: Librairie Floury, 1937, p. 127, ill. (Published as "Jeune Fille en Jaune")
Alexander Romm, "Henri Matisse," Moscow: Ogiz-Izogiz, 1937, no. 36, ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow")
"Art in our Time: An Exhibition to Celebrate the Tenth Anniversary of the Museum of Modern Art and the Opening of its New Building Held at the Time of the New York World's Fair," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1939, p. 370, no. 96, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
"A Century of Baltimore Collecting 1840-1940," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1941, p. 85. (Published as "Young Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Alexander Romm, "Matisse: A Social Critique," New York: Lear, 1947, p. 96, n.p., ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow")
Louis Aragon, Henry Clifford, and Henri Matisse, "Henri Matisse: Retrospective Exhibition of Paintings, Drawings and Sculpture," Philadelphia: The Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1948, p. 41, no. 75, ill. (Published as "Young Girl in Yellow Dress")
Thomas B. Hess, "Matisse: A Life of Color," "Art News," April 1948, vol. XLVII, no. 2, p. 19, ill. (Published as "Yellow Dress")
George Boas, Adelyn D. Breeskin, and J.G. D'Arcy Paul, "Selections from the Cone Collection," "News of The Baltimore Museum of Art," October 1949, vol. 13, no. 1, p. 18. (Published s "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
"$3,000,000 Art Collection," "Look," April 25, 1950, vol. 14, no. 9, p. 103, ill. p. 103. (Published as "Young Girl in Yellow Dress")
Alfred H. Barr, Jr., "Matisse: His Art and His Public," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1951, pp. 216, 224, 246, 455, 557, 575, 579, ill. p. 455. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Clive Bell, "Modern French Painting: The Cone Collection," Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1951, p. 23.
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. 62. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Clement Greenberg, "Henri Matisse," New York: Harry N. Abrams and Pocket Books, Inc., 1953, pl. 26, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
"Loan Exhibition of Paintings Henri Matisse," New York: Paul Rosenberg and Company, 1954, no. 14, ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow Dress")
André Sauret, "Portraits par Henri Matisse," Monte Carlo: Éditions du Livre, 1954, pl. 133, ill. (Published as "Mademoiselle L.L. Jeune fille en jaune ou la robe tilleul. Nice, 1929-1931")
"Matisse: A Rare Collection Record," "Vogue," March 1, 1955, vol. 125, pp. 133, 135, ill. p. 135. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
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. 30, 36, no. 71, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Leslie Judd Portner, "Baltimore Museum Opens New Cone Wing," "The Christian Science Monitor," March 23, 1957, p. 10, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Leslie Judd Portner, "Worthy Home for Cone Collection," "The Washington Post and Times Herald," August 25, 1957, p. E7. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Raymond Escholier, "Matisse: A Portrait of the Artist and the Man," New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1960, pp. 10, 223, no. 39, ill. (Published as "Jeune fille en jaune")
Barbara Pollack, "The Collectors: Dr. Claribel and Miss Etta Cone," Indianapolis: The Bobbs Merrill Company, Inc., 1962, pp. 227, 229. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Carla Gottlieb, "The Role of the Window in the Art of Matisse," "The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism," Summer 1964, vol. XXII, no. 4, pp. 400-401, 415, 419, fig. 13, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Jean Leymarie, Herbert Read, and William S. Lieberman, "Henri Matisse," Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1966, pp. 16, 97, 190, no. 68, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
George Boas, Adelyn Breeskin, and Gertrude Rosenthal, "Paintings, Sculpture, and Drawings in the Cone Collection," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1967, pp. 16, 67, no. 68, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Frederick Brill, "Matisse," New York: Paul Hamlyn, 1967, pp. 5, 37, pl. 31, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Jean Guichard-Meili, "Matisse," New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1967, pp. 103, 248, no. 96, ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow")
Jean Guichard-Meili, "Henri Matisse, Son Oeuvre, Son Univers," Paris: Fernand Hazan Editeur, 1967, pp. 103, 250, fig. 96, ill. (Published as "Jeune fille en jaune")
Jean Leymarie, "Evoluzione di Matisse," "L'Arte Moderna" 1967, no. 83, vol. X, pp. 60, 67, p. 60, ill. (Published as "Ragazza con l'abito giallo")
Erwin O. Christensen, "A Guide to Art Museums in the United States," New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1968, p. 114.
Lawrence Gowing, "Matisse," London: The Arts Council of Great Britain, 1968, pp. 130, 165, 170, no. 102, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Kenjiro Okamoto, "L'Art du Monde, Bonnard/Matisse, vol. 16," Paris: Kawade Shobo, 1968, p. 111, no. 59, ill. (Published as "Jeune fille en jaune")
Pierre Schneider and Tamara Préaud, "Henri Matisse: Exposition du Centenaire," Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1970, pp. 91-92, 236, p. 236, ill. (Published as "La robe jaune")
Massimo Carrà and Mario Luzi, "L'opera di Matisse dalla rivolta 'fauve' all'intimismo 1904-1928," Milan: Rizzoli 1971, pp. 105, 114, no. 465, ill. (Published as "Il Vestito Giallo")
André Gide, "La Porte Étroite," Paris: Mercure de france, 1972, cover page, ill.
Edward T. Cone, "The Miss Etta Cones, the Steins, and M'sieu Matisse: A Memoir," "American Scholar," Spring 1973, p. 454. (Published as 'La Robe jaune")
Jack D. Flam, "Matisse on Art," London: Phaidon, 1973, pp. 14-15, 194, fig. 34, ill. (Published as "Jeune Fille en Jaune")
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. 32. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Lawrence Gowing, "Matisse," New York: Oxford University Press, 1979, p. 210, no. 144, ill. (Published as "Jeune fille en jaune")
The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, ed., "Matisse," Tokyo: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, 1981, pp. 101, 207, no. 77, ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow Dress")
Mannering, Douglas. The Art of Matisse. London: Optimum Books, 1982, page 12 (published as “Girl in a Yellow Dress”).
Pierre Schneider, Massimo Carrà, and Xavier Deryng, "Tout l'Oeuvre Peint de Matisse 1904-1928," Paris: Flammarion, 1982, pp. 105, 115, no. 465, ill. (Published as "La Robe Jaune")
Israel Rosen, "The Cone Sisters: Myths, Realities and Some Conjectures," "Helicon Nine, the Journal of Women's Arts and Letters," Winter 1983, no. 9, pp. 84, 85, p. 84, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Michael P. Mezzatesta, "Henri Matisse Sculptor/Painter," Fort Worth: Kimbell Art Museum, 1984, pp. 34, 132, no. 50, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Pierre Schneider, "Matisse," Paris: Flammarion, 1984, pp. 452, 536-537, 601, 752, p. 537, ill.
Nicholas Watkins, "Matisse," Oxford: Phaidon Press, 1984, pp. 169, 180, 235, 238, pl. 155, ill. (Published as "Girl in a Yellow Dress")
Sam Hunter and John Jacobus, "Modern Art: Painting/Sculpture/Architecture, Second Edition," New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1985, pp. 220, 407, fig. 383, ill. (Published as "Girl in Yellow Dress")
Brenda Richardson, "Dr. Claribel & Miss Etta: The Cone Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1985, pp. 94, 107, 127, 140-141, 143, 186, 201, p. 141, ill.
Jack Cowart and Dominique Fourcade, "Henri Matisse: The Early Years in Nice, 1916-1930," Washington, DC: The National Gallery of Art, 1986, pp. 231, 332, 334, no. 170, ill. (Published as "La robe tilleul/the Yellow Dress")
Tom Krumpak, "Henri Matisse and Le Grand Interieur," "Designers West," March 1986, p. 220, ill.
Jacqueline and Maurice Guillaud, "Matisse: Le Rythme et la Ligne," Paris: Guillaud Editions, 1987, pp. 291, 312, 314, 646, nos. 297, 298, ill. (Published as "La robe jaune")
Jack Flam, ed., "Matisse: A Retrospective," New York: Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc., 1988, pp. 259, 392, pl. 82, ill.
Gérard Durozoi, "Matisse," Paris: Fernand Hazan, 1989, pp. 118-119, p. 119, ill. (Published as "La Robe Jaune")
Monod-Fontaine, Isabelle. Matisse: Œuvres de Henri Matisse. Paris: Centre Georges Pompidou, 1989, page 193, fig. d (published as “La Robe jaune”).
Cleaver Forbes, "A Sultan and a Prince," "Art News," May 1990, p. 41, ill.
John Elderfield, "Henri Matisse: A Retrospective," New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1992, pp. 296, 351, 479, pl. 283, ill.
Jack Flam, "Matisse: Image into Sign," Saint Louis: The Saint Louis Art Museum, 1993, pp. 5, 8, no. 3, ill.
Xavier Girard, "Matisse: Une Splendeur Inouïe," Paris: Gallimard, 1993, pp. 105-106, 108, 174, p. 106, ill. (Published as "La Robe jaune")
Susie Kalil, "The Joy of Color, the Ecstasy of Form," "Houston Press," December 23, 1993, p. 27.
Judi Freeman, "Picasso and the Weeping Women: The Years of Marie-Thérèse Walter & Dora Maar," Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1994, p. 157, fig. 118, ill. (Published as "The Yellow Robe")
Frank Milner, "Henri Matisse," London: Bison Books Ltd., 1994, p. 105, ill.
Turner, Caroline and Roger Benjamin, " Matisse," Queensland: Queensland Art Gallery, 1995, pp. 100, 303, fig. 3, ill.
Delectorskaya, Lydia. Henri Matisse, contre vents et marées: peinture et livres illustrés de 1939 à 1943. Paris: Éditions Irus et Vincent Hansma, 1996, p. 26, ill. (published as "Jeune fille en jaune (la robe jaune”).
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. 42, 84-85, 159, no. 34, ill.
John O'Brian, "Ruthless Hedonism: The American Reception of Matisse," Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1999, pp. 45, 88, 89, 90, 225, 280, fig. 36, ill.
Sona K. Johnston and William R. Johnston, "The Triumph of French Painting: Masterpieces from Ingres to Matisse," London: Scala Publishers, 2000, pp. 34, 35, 156, pl. 1, ill.
Charles Darwent, "Double Vision," "The Independent," June 17, 2001, p. 21.
Jay Fisher, "Dr. Claribel and Miss Etta Cone: A Collection of Modern Art for Baltimore," in Rosella Mamoli Zorzi, ed., "Before Peggy Guggenheim: American Woman Art Collectors," Venice: Marsilio, 2001, pp. 125, 126.
Jack Flam, "Matisse in the Cone Collection: The Poetics of Vision," Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2001, pp. 9, 82-84, 87, 95, pl. 36, ill.
Gabriel, Mary. The Art of Acquiring: A Portrait of Etta and Claribel Cone. [Baltimore, MD]: Bancroft Press, 2002, unpaged plate section.
Eric M. Zafran, "Impressionism to Surrealism from The Baltimore Museum of Art: Selections from the Collections of Claribel and Etta Cone, Saidie Adler May and Blanche Adler," Hartford: Wadsworth Atheneum, 2002, p. 9, ill.
Dorothy Kosinski, Jay McKean Fisher, Steven Nash, "Matisse: Painter as Sculptor," New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007, pp. 28, 45, 244, 247, 277, 293, no. 128, ill.
Ellen B. Hirschland and Nancy Hirschland Ramage, "The Cone Sisters of Baltimore: Collecting at Full Tilt," Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 2008, pp. 147, 160, 162-163, 277, fig. 7.10, ill.
"Giving is an Art," "BMA Today," Winter 2008-2009, p. 18, ill.
Fillion, Susan. Miss Etta and Dr. Claribel: Bringing Matisse to America. Boston: David R. Godine, 2011, page 57.
Baltimore Museum of Art. The Baltimore Museum of Art: Celebrating a Museum. Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2014.
Fisher, Jay. "Mallarmé's Poésies." In "Graphic Passion: Matisse and the Books Arts," edited by John Bidwell (Pennsylvania: Penn State University Press, 2015), p. 29.
Bois, Yve-Alain, ed. Matisse in the Barnes Foundation, vol. 1. Philadelphia: Barnes Foundation, 2015, p. 110, fig. 18.
Bishop, Janet and Katy Rothkopf, eds., Matisse/Diebenkorn. New York: Prestel, 2016.
Cozzi, Leslie and Katherine Rothkopf, eds., "A Modern Influence: Henri Matisse, Etta Cone, and Baltimore." Baltimore: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2021. ill.
Girard, Xavier. Matisse: Une splendeur inouÏe. Paris: Découvertes Gallimard, 2020.
Affron, Matthew, Cécile Debray, and Claudine Grammont. Matisse in the 1930s. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2022. ill.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by bequest, 1949; Etta Cone, Baltimore, by purchase from the artist, 1932
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Inscribed: Recto: Lower left in black paint, "Henri-Matisse 1929-1931" Verso: The canvas has been wax lined and there are no visible inscriptions on the verso.