The Yellow Curtain 1915

Henri Matisse made this painting, The Yellow Curtain, with oil on canvas, though we don't know exactly when. Look at how the edges of the shapes aren’t clearly defined but slightly blurred. That’s where the magic happens; it feels like the forms are emerging, like an idea taking shape. There’s a real interest in surface here, isn’t there? It isn't obscured by layers of illusionistic depth. It's kind of flat. The colors aren't mixed too much, they're distinct. See the turquoise around the yellow shape? It’s applied in these textured strokes that create a sense of depth and atmosphere. Notice those three black lines hanging down below the blue shape? It makes me think of Joan Miro, of dreamscapes, and of making a painting that is about color and form as much as it is about representation. Matisse's work invites us into an ongoing conversation about how we see, feel, and interpret the world around us.