Publication Date: 2023

Publisher: Zhejiang Photographic Press

Binding: Hardcover, 512 pages

Languages: Chinese and English

ISBN: 9787551445665

From July 15 to October 15, 2023, UCCA Center for Contemporary Art presents “Matisse by Matisse” in collaboration with Musée départemental Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis, marking the first solo exhibition by modern master Henri Matisse (1869-1954) held in the Chinese mainland. The exhibition is the most comprehensive presentation in China to date of the life and work of Matisse—founder and key representative of Fauvism, one of the most influential art movements of the twentieth century. The exhibition features more than 280 works by the artist, along with handicrafts and other objects he himself collected, all drawn from the collection of Musée départmental Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis. It covers Matisse’s entire career and the full range of his practice, encompassing mediums including oil painting, sculpture, ink drawings, prints, cut-outs, illustrations, and textiles. “Matisse by Matisse” includes the artist’s academic beginnings; pieces representative of his turn towards Fauvism; experiments leading to his invention of the paper cut-outs later in life; and works from the culmination of a lifetime of artistic exploration, his design of the Vence Chapel. The exhibition subsequently traveled to UCCA Edge, Shanghai, where it runs from November 4, 2023, through February 18, 2024.

In celebration of “Matisse by Matisse,” UCCA published a bilingual catalogue documenting the landmark exhibition. The book features an essay by exhibition curator Patrice Deparpe retracing the artist’s remarkable life and career, along with another essay from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts professor Cai Tao, exploring Matisse and Fauvism’s influence on the Chinese modern art movement from the 1920s to 1940s. Mirroring the structure of the show, the catalogue is divided into 11 sections and includes more than 300 artwork reproductions and archival photographs. Matisse by Matisse is published by Zhejiang Photographic Press, with design provided by Luk Chi Cheong.