Woman Reading 1921

Henri Matisse made this painting, Woman Reading, at some point, we don't really know when. Look at how the colours dance! It's like he's inviting us to see the world through his eyes, one brushstroke at a time. The material quality of this piece is fantastic. The paint isn’t overly thick but it isn't too thin either, he's built the whole composition from these careful blocks of colour. Look at the way he’s painted the flowers in the vase, how he’s used the same colour palette as the background so the image as a whole hums with a kind of visual vibration. See how he's scumbled the background, that loose application of paint gives it such a vivid texture. It’s like he's saying, "Hey, let's not take ourselves too seriously, let's just enjoy the process of seeing and making!" Matisse reminds me a little of Bonnard, in the way that he’s using domestic scenes, but his mark making is a little more bold and declarative.