The Art of Pattern: Henri Matisse and Japanese Woodcut Artists brings together 14 paintings and prints by iconic Modernist painter Henri Matisse and some of Japan’s most popular woodcut artists—Kikugawa Eizan, Keisai Eisen, and Utagawa Kunisada. Across cultures, artists have used patterns to signal human desire, whether through the depiction of opulent background settings or lavishly adorned clothing. In the 1920s, Matisse often surrounded his models with heavily decorated interior backgrounds, using prints and patterns in his compositions to create and define the private spaces his figures inhabited. By contrast, early 19th-century Japanese woodblock artists depicted their female subjects more often in public spaces and clothed in ornately decorated and many-layered kimonos. These prints often show glamorized female courtesans and entertainers depicted as though on parade.
The Art of Pattern: Henri Matisse and Japanese Woodcut Artists is on view now through January 5, 2025 in the Ruth R. Marder Center for Matisse Studies.
More information: https://artbma.org
Henri Matisse. Seated Odalisque, Left Knee Bent, Ornamental Background and Checkerboard. 1928. The Baltimore Museum of Art: The Cone Collection, formed by Dr. Claribel Cone and Miss Etta Cone of Baltimore, Maryland. BMA 1950.255 ©Succession H. Matisse, Paris/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Kikugawa Eizan. The Courtesan Oyodo of the Tsuruya Brothel; Tiger Hour (Tora No Koku), 4 to 6 a.m. (1812 or later). The Baltimore Museum of Art: Straton Family Fund. 2008.11
