Still Life with Geranium
1906
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
100.3 × 81.5 cm (39 1/2 × 32 1/8 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Modern Art
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
87045
Art Historical Context
Henri Matisse’s *Still Life with Geranium* (1906) captures a pivotal moment in early modernism. Created during the height of the Fauvist movement, the painting reflects Matisse’s bold embrace of vivid color and simplified forms over realistic representation. As a leading figure among the “wild beasts” of French painting, Matisse used everyday objects like the potted geranium to explore emotional resonance through expressive brushwork and intense hues rather than literal detail. Painted in oil on canvas, the work’s substantial scale—over three feet tall—gives the modest still-life subject a co...
About the Artist
Henri Matisse · 1869–1954
Henri Matisse (1869-1954) was a French painter, draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor who is widely regarded as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century and the greatest colorist of his era. Born in Le Cateau-Cambresis in northern France, Matisse initially studied law before discovering his passion for art during a period of convalescence at age 20. He became the leading figure of F...