The Beasts of the Sea 1950

Henri Matisse made this print titled 'The Beasts of the Sea' in 1950, and it's a great example of his approach to artmaking as a process of continuous exploration. Look at the textures created by the different colours and shapes, see how they are arranged, almost like building blocks, and notice the way he alternates between flat, opaque colours and more textured areas, giving the artwork a tangible, almost sculptural quality. The placement of the black shapes and the different densities of the blues add a sense of depth. Take, for instance, the blue fronds at the bottom of the left panel. The way they contrast with the grey beneath, it feels like Matisse is playing with the viewers perception, inviting us to question what we see and how we see it. Matisse’s work reminds me of Elizabeth Murray, who also used abstraction, shape and colour to question traditional notions of representation. Like all great art, it's an ongoing conversation. The real beast is the process.