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    Matisse

    The Pursuit of Harmony

    Author John Klein, Elizabeth Cowling, Alastair Wright
    with Acquavella Galleries
    Hardcover
    $75.00 US
    Rizzoli
    9-5/8"W x 12"H | 20 oz | 7 per carton
    On sale Sep 01, 2026 | 275 Pages | 9780847877645
    Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies

    A unique opportunity to experience the full brilliance of Matisse, featuring major works from museums, foundations, and private collections—many rarely shown in the United States.

    This definitive volume offers an unparalleled look at Henri Matisse’s lifelong pursuit of form, created to accompany a landmark exhibition. Showcasing more than fifty paintings, works on paper, and sculptures, it brings together a remarkable range of material in one beautifully crafted book.

    The publication underscores the interdisciplinary nature of Matisse’s practice, presenting the dialogue between the artist’s two- and three-dimensional work. It traces his evolution from the early years of the twentieth century through his boldly innovative postwar period.

    A major contribution to Matisse studies and an indispensable resource for collectors, scholars, and art enthusiasts, this volume preserves a rare, non-traveling exhibition for a global audience—offering a vivid, enduring record of Matisse’s transformative vision.
    "For the last two years, working with his three children — Eleanor, Nicholas and Alexander — and Emily Crowley, the gallery’s director and curator — [William Acquavella] has been organizing “Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony,’’ an exhibition opening April 9 that includes more than 50 paintings, sculptures and works-on-paper from public and private collections, many of which have rarely been shown before... “It is about the artist’s approach to form and the figure and how it inspired Matisse to evolve as an artist,’’ said Crowley, the curator, which is why there are a good number of sculptures on display in every room." — THE NEW YORK TIMES

    "[Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony] distills a conversation essential to Matisse’s whole career: the balancing interplay between color, form, and line in space into a composition that feels spontaneous but is actually the result of attuned study." — GALERIE MAGAZINE

    "'Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony' is a stunning gathering of more than 40 paintings, drawings and sculptures [....] Over and over again, he seduces us with color, engages us with delectable subject matter, and then stuns us with his overwhelming pictorial intelligence and inventiveness." — WALL STREET JOURNAL
    John Klein is an internationally known specialist of Matisse. He is professor of art history at Washington University in St. Louis and author of Matisse Portraits (2001) and Matisse and Decoration (2018). Elizabeth Cowling is professor emerita in history of art at the University of Edinburgh. She coauthored Matisse Picasso (2002). Alastair Wright is associate professor in the history of art at Oxford and author of Matisse and the Subject of Modernism.
    John Klein View titles by John Klein
    Elizabeth Cowling View titles by Elizabeth Cowling
    Alastair Wright View titles by Alastair Wright

    About

    A unique opportunity to experience the full brilliance of Matisse, featuring major works from museums, foundations, and private collections—many rarely shown in the United States.

    This definitive volume offers an unparalleled look at Henri Matisse’s lifelong pursuit of form, created to accompany a landmark exhibition. Showcasing more than fifty paintings, works on paper, and sculptures, it brings together a remarkable range of material in one beautifully crafted book.

    The publication underscores the interdisciplinary nature of Matisse’s practice, presenting the dialogue between the artist’s two- and three-dimensional work. It traces his evolution from the early years of the twentieth century through his boldly innovative postwar period.

    A major contribution to Matisse studies and an indispensable resource for collectors, scholars, and art enthusiasts, this volume preserves a rare, non-traveling exhibition for a global audience—offering a vivid, enduring record of Matisse’s transformative vision.

    Praise

    "For the last two years, working with his three children — Eleanor, Nicholas and Alexander — and Emily Crowley, the gallery’s director and curator — [William Acquavella] has been organizing “Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony,’’ an exhibition opening April 9 that includes more than 50 paintings, sculptures and works-on-paper from public and private collections, many of which have rarely been shown before... “It is about the artist’s approach to form and the figure and how it inspired Matisse to evolve as an artist,’’ said Crowley, the curator, which is why there are a good number of sculptures on display in every room." — THE NEW YORK TIMES

    "[Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony] distills a conversation essential to Matisse’s whole career: the balancing interplay between color, form, and line in space into a composition that feels spontaneous but is actually the result of attuned study." — GALERIE MAGAZINE

    "'Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony' is a stunning gathering of more than 40 paintings, drawings and sculptures [....] Over and over again, he seduces us with color, engages us with delectable subject matter, and then stuns us with his overwhelming pictorial intelligence and inventiveness." — WALL STREET JOURNAL

    Author

    John Klein is an internationally known specialist of Matisse. He is professor of art history at Washington University in St. Louis and author of Matisse Portraits (2001) and Matisse and Decoration (2018). Elizabeth Cowling is professor emerita in history of art at the University of Edinburgh. She coauthored Matisse Picasso (2002). Alastair Wright is associate professor in the history of art at Oxford and author of Matisse and the Subject of Modernism.
    John Klein View titles by John Klein
    Elizabeth Cowling View titles by Elizabeth Cowling
    Alastair Wright View titles by Alastair Wright

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