Figure décorative 1908

Editor: So, here we have Henri Matisse’s bronze sculpture, "Figure Décorative," created in 1908. It’s...powerful. A seated figure, kind of angular, but something about the face feels very modern. What do you see in this piece that maybe I'm missing? Curator: Powerful, yes, precisely! And yet, what is she decorating, one wonders? Matisse was grappling with something very visceral here. The solidity of bronze, see how he uses it to both ground her and let her defy gravity, the curves, the way the planes intersect…It almost feels Cubist, doesn't it? Though, not quite. He's hinting at deconstruction but really digging into the earthiness of form. Does it speak to anything that's on your mind at this moment? Editor: I can see the hints of Cubism, and the earthiness for sure. The pose is confident, but there is this look on her face like she's staring out into a future that maybe isn’t so bright. Maybe a premonition of the World Wars? Curator: A premonition…yes, I like that interpretation! The year, 1908, hangs heavy doesn't it? These early stirrings, an anticipation maybe, that sits just behind her eyes. That she is "decorative" makes one stop to consider all that society pushes onto woman's beauty in times of peace, in contrast to the premonition, like you pointed out. Interesting! How has your perception of her shifted now? Editor: It definitely gives her a sense of depth that I didn't see at first, like she’s more than just this figure but embodies this bigger…feeling, you know? Curator: Absolutely! It becomes a question of who she is and, simultaneously, who *we* are within the face of inevitable, looming change, expressed perfectly through an arresting, earthy sensuality. A sculpture can have that profound resonance, after all!