- Title
- Henriette III
- Date Made
- 1929, cast 1954
- Medium
- Bronze, cast number 2/10
- Dimensions
- 16 x 10 x 8 in. (40.64 x 25.4 x 20.32 cm)
- Accession Number
- M.2005.70.80
- Collecting Area
- Modern Art
- Curatorial Notes
Henri Matisse’s Henriette III is based on the previous sculpture in his Henriette series (1925–29) rather than the live presence of the model Henriette Darricarrère (who is also one of the sitters in Tea, on view in the next gallery). The most abstract work in the group, Henriette III rewards careful observation: approached from the front, the pinched cheeks, roughly-hewn features, and cap-like hair make the head appear somewhat awkward. But as the view shifts to the sitter’s profile, the corner of the mouth, the eye, and the nose all lift in an elegant sweep of youthful glamour. As the view shifts again to the other side, the brow lowers, the cheek is jowly, and the mouth is set—aging the face in the blink of an eye. These fleeting references to time and mortality contrast with the solid materiality of the sculpture, which is emphasized by its base and texture.
Wall label, 2021.
- Provenance
Matisse Family, Paris; [Galerie Beyeler, Basel, sold 2001 to]; Janice and Henri Lazarof, Los Angeles, partial, fractional and promised gift 2005 to; LACMA.
- Selected Bibliography
- Barron, Stephanie. Envisioning Modernism: The Janice and Henri Lazarof Collection. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Munich; New York: DelMonico Books-Prestel, 2012.
