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Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse was born in 1869 in France and
was the oldest son of a merchant. He initially studied law. In 1889, he developed an illness. While he was recovering, his mother brought him some art supplies and he began painting. His father was very disappointed when Henri decided to become an artist.

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Henri Matisse - first inspiration and artist style

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Henri Matisse - first inspiration and artist style

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At first, Matisse painted in a traditional style. In 1896, he visited his artist friend John Peter Russell in France, where he was introduced to Impressionism, and to the work of Van Gogh. Matisse changed his style completely.

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Impressionist artists were not trying to paint a reflection of real life, but an ‘impression’ of what the person, light, atmosphere, object or landscape looked like to them. And that’s why they were called impressionists! They tried to capture the movement and life of what they saw and show it to us as if it were happening before our eyes.

Some of the main impressionist artists are Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley, Auguste Renoir, Mary Cassatt and Edgar Degas.

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In 1941, Matisse had serious surgery and began using a wheelchair. At this time, he began creating large paper collages, with some help from assistants. He called
his technique ‘painting with scissors’. In 1952, he established a museum dedicated to his work, the Matisse Museum in Le Cateau. He died in 1954.

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Rousseau was born in 1844 in Western France, Rousseau attended a local boarding school. Although he did not excel in some of his subjects, he won prizes for
drawing and for music.

After leaving school, Rousseau served in the army for four years from 1863, before leaving to work for the French government.

He worked as a tax collector for the Paris Customs Office between 1871 and 1893.

Prior to his early retirement in 1893, painting was a hobby for Rousseau. He received no formal art training, teaching himself to paint instead.

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This means he did not try to paint things exactly as they looked in real life. While Rousseau was criticised by many other artists for his style, others loved his work. Pablo Picasso even held a banquet in Rousseau’s honour.

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Rousseau’s paintings became very popular following his death in 1910. There have been major exhibitions showcasing his work around the world, including in Paris, New York, London and Washington. His work is said to have influenced many other artists.

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Rousseau was well known for his jungle themes, despite never leaving France or seeing a jungle in real life. Instead, he took his inspiration from illustrated books, visits to zoos, the botanical gardens of Paris and recollections from French soldiers who had been on foreign visits. Mainly working on
large canvases, Rousseau’s style featured:
●imaginary or dream-like scenes
●rich colour schemes
●detailed and vivid pictures
His style was called post-impressionism.