Persane (The Persian)
Henri Matisse, Persane (The Persian), 1929, lithograph on paper, Museum Purchase: Helen Thurston Ayer Fund, © artist or other rights holder, 40.12
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- Title
Persane (The Persian)
- Related Titles
original language: Persane
translated: The Persian
- Artist
- Date
1929
- Medium
lithograph on paper
- Edition
46/50
- Catalogue Raisonné
Duthuit-Matisse 507
- Dimensions (H x W x D)
image: 17 5/8 in x 11 3/8 in; sheet: 24 13/16 in x 17 1/2 in
- Inscriptions & Markings
signature; numbered: 46/50 / Henri - Matisse, graphite, bottom right
- Collection Area
Graphic Arts
- Category
Prints
- Object Type
planographic print
- Culture
French
- Credit Line
Museum Purchase: Helen Thurston Ayer Fund
- Accession Number
40.12
- Copyright
© artist or other rights holder
- Terms
In the 1920's, Matisse painted a series of odalisques, beautiful women in Arabian costume. Of these, he said: "My models are the principal theme in my work. The emotional interest aroused in me by them does not necessarily appear in the representation of their bodies. Often it is rather in the lines through qualities distributed over the whole canvas or paper. But everyone sees this."
The Persian is unusual in that it is very nearly a portrait. As a rule, Mattise's odalisques of this period have iconlike faces, are half or completely nude, and are arranged in provocative poses against swirling arabesques. Here the model's face is carefully rendered, her pose demure, and the background a simple grid. She is fully, though sensuously, clothed. Her gaze is direct, and her presence is shimmering and intimate.
- Exhibitions
1998 After Impressionism: Printmakers in Paris Portland Art Museum
1999 Early Modern Prints from the Permanent Collection Portland Art Museum
