ONCE seen at the Matisse/Picasso, who can ever forget Matisse’s portraits of Gertrude Stein, Mme Matisse, the haughty chilly beauty of Greta Prozor, or the razor-sharp quality of the razor-sharp features of Auguste Pellerin II. Pellerin, a Parisian businessman who had made a fortune in the manufacture of margarine, was an art collector, and the board of directors of his company commissioned Matisse to paint Pellerin’s portrait with the intention of giving it to the sitter. Pellerin did not like the first portrait and asked the artist to paint another. When the second portrait was finished Pellerin decided that the first picture was the more acceptable and had the sauce to suggest that he receive both for the original price. Matisse held out for the full price for each and Pellerin finally took both on these terms.
Auguste Pellerin I is a weak and sketchy characterisation compared with the black, hardened, carapace-like and disturbing image of Pellerin II. With 200 illustrations, this book discusses Matisse’s considerable oeuvre as a maker of portraits and self-portraits, in both psychological and contextual highlights.
Matisse Portraits
Matisse Portraits by John Klein, published by Yale University Press. ISBN 0300081006 £35hb
