The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW) presents a gallery-wide festival celebrating French impressionist Henri Matisse, a leading figure in modern art with his mastery of the expressive language of colour and drawing, displayed throughout an oeuvre spanning six decades.
Sally Smart, Chant (Choreography of cutting) (detail, video still), 2019-21. © the artist. Photograph: James Wright. Courtesy the artist and Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
From 23 October through and into 2022, ‘Matisse Alive’ floods the Gallery with colour and energy, reflecting the artist’s endearing joie de vivre. A free program of art, music, performance, dance, and community celebrates Matisse’s art as an inspiration, point of orientation and focus of dialogue for artists today. Four new artist projects by Nina Chanel Abney (US), Sally Smart (Australia), Angela Tiatia (Samoa/NZ/Australia) and Robin White (NZ), present contemporary perspectives on this ‘modern master’ and focus primarily on Matisse’s imagining of the Pacific and his representation of the female figure – from dynamic textile environments to heroically scaled paintings and immersive video work.
The program continues with a spectacular display of tifaifai and tivaevae – the Polynesian textile tradition of quilting that directly influenced Matisse’s late ‘cut-outs’, while collection highlights explore Matisse’s visions of domestic spaces, revealing his ongoing relevance and compelling influence on contemporary artists, including Betty Woodman and Kamrooz Aram, in shaping spaces of intimacy and contemplation.
Angela Tiatia with Tristan Jalleh, for new video by Angela Tiatia, The pearl 2021, for the ‘Matisse Alive’ exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales © Angela Tiatia © the artist. Courtesy the artist and Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
‘Matisse Alive’ also offers a creative project space with interactive activities for all ages. ‘Matisse Alive’ is a precursor and companion to the AGNSW’s major exhibition ‘Matisse: Life & Spirit, Masterpieces from the Centre Pompidou, Paris’, featuring more than 100 works by the artist, including paintings, drawings and sculptures, on view from 20 November 2021 to 13 March 2022.
