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Portrait of Léonide Massine

A work made of graphite, with erasing on ivory wove paper, fixed.
© 2018 Succession H. Matisse / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

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  • A work made of graphite, with erasing on ivory wove paper, fixed.

Date:

April 28, 1920

Artist:

Henri Matisse
French, 1869-1954

About this artwork

Massine (1895-1979) was chosen when still in his teens by Diaghilev to become the leading male dancer and choreographer of the Ballets Russes in the company’s middle period (1914-21). Early in his career, Massine collaborated with Jean Cocteau, Erik Satie and Pablo Picasso on the 1917 ballet Parade; he worked in the same year with Leon Bakst, who designed his Les femmes de bonne humeur. One of Massine’ s enduring successes, La boutique fantasque, dates from 1919. Bakst made the first designs, exhibited here, for the set and costumes for this ballet, but they were rejected by Diaghilev who chose Andre Derain to complete the project. Matisse’s portrait of Massine was drawn during the preparation of Massine’ s ballet Le chant du Rossignol, for which Matisse designed the sets and costumes.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Henri Matisse

Title

Portrait of Léonide Massine

Place

France (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1920

Medium

Graphite, with erasing on ivory wove paper, fixed

Inscriptions

Signed recto, lower right, in graphite; "Henri-Matisse"; inscribed lower right, in graphite: "28 avril 1920. Monte Carlo"

Dimensions

39.7 × 28.8 cm (15 11/16 × 11 3/8 in.)

Credit Line

Samuel A. Marx Purchase Fund

Reference Number

1972.427

Copyright

© 2018 Succession H. Matisse / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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