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Destiny

Artist Henri Matisse (French, 1869–1954)
Title Destiny (Le Destin)
Plate Number Plate XVI, pages 114 and 115
Series Jazz
Date 1943–1947, published 1947
Medium Color pochoir (stencil) on paper
Dimensions Image: 16 5/8 × 25 5/8 in. (42.2 × 65.1 cm)
Sheet: 16 5/8 × 25 5/8 in. (42.2 × 65.1 cm)
Portfolio: 17 1/2 × 13 3/8 × 2 1/4 in. (44.5 × 34 × 5.7 cm)
Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 65.23.16

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About this Work

By superimposing layers of luscious color, Henri Matisse created two distinctly different panels. On the right, two small kneeling figures cling to each other framed by blue, yellow, magenta, and green. On the left, a large, dark masklike profile defined in brilliant magenta dominates the panel. Matisse's assistant, Lydia Delectorskaya, explained that the small human couple is "fearfully entwined in the face of Destiny...menacing and dangerous."

Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art has a complete copy of Matisse's Jazz (Eskenazi Museum of Art 65.23.1–.20) in its original slipcase bearing a personal inscription to the artist’s friend Jean Puy, a Post-Impressionist painter.


Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

Publisher Tériade
Printer Edmond Vairel, Paris
Printer Draeger Frères, Paris
Plate Number Plate XVI, pages 114 and 115
Series Title Jazz

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Cite this Page
"Destiny | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=65.23.16