Artistic Training

            Henri Matisse first sparked an artistic interest in 1889 when his mother purchased him an art set while he was in the recovery stages of an appendicitis attack.  Matisse stated that he discovered “a sense of paradise” within the art in which he was creating.  Just three years later, Matisse moved to Paris to study art and follow the traditional nineteenth-century academic path.  He first studied at the Académie Julian under the conservative William-Adolphe Bouguereau, and then at the École des Beaux-Arts under the Symbolist painter Gustave Moreau.  At the start of his painting journey, Matisse first experimented with painting still – lifes and landscapes in a traditional manner.  Having the chance to learn from some of the masters of the trade during this time period, such as Jean – Baptiste – Simeon Chardin, Nicolas Poussin, Edouard Manet, and Atoine Watteau.  Matisse’s early work, at times, replicated that of Edouard Manet and Paul Cezanne. 

  

In 1892, Henri Matisse joined French painter, Gustave Moreau, which was around the same time when he went into an intense experiment of color.  Moreau would tell his students, “Colors must be thought, dreamed, and imagined.”  Moreau’s “symbolist attitude” towards painting allowed for Matisse to incorporate intense, expressive color into his pieces. 

            In 1895, Henri Matisse was accepted into some of the most prestigious art schools in France known as the Ecole des Beaux Arts It became evident that Matisse was becoming quite attached to Moreau as a mentor due to the valuable lessons he was learning under the teachings of him.  Moreau encouraged his students to look to nature for inspiration and draw outdoors to experience the ever-changing atmosphere.  Also, he never interfered with the personal individuality of each student as well as his/her own learning curve.  Just as teachers today tell their students, Moreau told his students to stay up to date with the art around them and go visit museums to indulge their minds into inspirational artwork on which they may borrow ideas and techniques from.  He continued his color studies with Moreau until 1895, when Moreau sadly passed away.  Matisse frantically searched high and low for a new mentor due to the fact that his own life was quite chaotic at the time due to family and financial troubles. 

           

Following these tough times with his family and financial status, Henri Matisse, took a visit to the coast of a France province, Brittany, to visit with the Australian Impressionist, John Peter Russell.  Russell would soon introduce Matisse into the Impressionistic work of Vincent Van Gogh. Henri Matisse realized the possibilities of art within this specific sector and changed his entire creative plan.  Russell became Matisse’s teacher and introduced him and taught him the color theory.  These teachings lead Matisse down a roadway of opportunity and exploration.

Written By: Brian Rohrmann

Footnote Citations: 

Advameg Inc., "Encyclopedia of World Biography." 

Accessed December 4, 2011. http://www.notablebiographies.com/Ma-

Mo/Matisse-Henri.html 

The Art Story Foundation, "Artist - Henri Matisse." 

Accessed December 4, 2011. http://www.theartstory.org/

artist-matisse-henri.htm.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, "Henri Matisse: Thematic Essay."

 Accessed December 4, 2011. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/

mati/hd_mati.htm.