LESSON THREE
INTERIOR WORLDS
The Influence of Persia and Morocco
“I do not literally paint that table, but the emotion it produces upon me.”
Two experiences in quick succession transformed Matisse's painting around 1911: an exhibition of Persian miniatures in Paris, whose intricate geometry and non-naturalistic color arrested him completely, and a journey to Morocco, where the blazing light and saturated hues were unlike anything he had encountered in France. Together, these encounters pushed his work toward a new flatness, an obsession with pattern, and a palette of startling, vivid intensity.
Video Password: Travel
Video Length: 15:55 minutes
The Red Studio
To understand more about Matisse’s life and creative process, it’s worth taking a moment to look at the history of this famous painting in two super informative videos created by The Museum of Modern Art.
A Painting Ahead of its Time
Was “The Red Studio” Always Red?
project
Interior Worlds
“Interior With Dog” — Henri Matisse
Matisse treated his interior paintings as a world he could arrange and rearrange, where floors, walls, fabrics, and objects merge into a unified decorative whole.
Again and again he returned to the same questions: how do pattern and color interact across a flat surface? How does a window or a vase become as visually alive as a human figure? Works like The Red Studio, Harmony in Red, and Interior at Nice each answer those questions differently, through a single blazing dominant color, through layered pattern on pattern, or through the luminous quiet of a sun-filled room.
In this project, you'll paint your own interior, a corner, a window, a tabletop, using his approach as your guide. You might choose a bold dominant color and let it govern the entire composition. Consider treating wallpaper, flooring, and objects as equal pattern elements rather than separate items in space. Resist the pull toward shadow and depth; embrace the flat and the decorative.
Watch as I work through my own version in acrylics, making decisions out loud so you can see the thinking behind each choice.
INTERIOR PROJECT: Part One
Video Password: Interior
Video Length: 21:34 minutes
This Video is divided into two parts for ease of downloading.
INTERIOR PROJECT: Part Two
Video Password: Still
Video Length: 19:22 minutes
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Consider using bold colors.
All color is relative so you should be adjusting your colors as you paint.
Use the concept of patterned areas contrasting with flat areas.
Play with perspective. Let it be distorted. (Fun for those of you who struggle with drawing because it doesn’t matter too much here).
Be playful! Remember Matisse wanted his paintings to convey JOY!
OTHER NOTES:
I used the app Procreate to create some quick studies. Feel free to create some studies with a digital app or with sketches.