Seated Woman 1936

Henri Matisse painted this ‘Seated Woman’ with oil on canvas. I like the confidence of the black lines that so boldly describe the figure in the space. Looking at the red of the sofa and the blue of her top I can imagine Matisse thinking about colour theory. I can almost see him considering Delacroix’s use of colour! Imagine him stepping back, squinting at the canvas, turning the painting upside down! He probably reworked the painting many times, building it up through trial, error, and intuition, before deciding it was finished. It looks like the paint is quite thin, so I guess he was using turpentine to make the colours flow. There’s something very satisfying about how the arm gently rests across her body. Painters are in an ongoing conversation, inspiring each other’s creativity! Hopefully, looking at this painting has sparked something in you.