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Forms

Artist Henri Matisse (French, 1869–1954)
Title Forms (Formes)
Plate Number Plate IX, pages 62 and 63
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 65.23.9

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About this Work

At first glance, the two shapes in "Forms" appear to be positive and negative versions of the same female torso. However, closer inspection reveals that each torso is unique; one cannot fit seamlessly back into the void of the other. Henri Matisse continued to explore ideas of positive and negative space in other cutouts for Jazz, such as "The Lagoon".

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 IX, pages 62 and 63
Series Title Jazz

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Cite this Page
"Forms | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=65.23.9