The Back Series Explained

The Back Series
Artist:	Henri Matisse
Year:	1909–1930
Type:	Plaster / Bronze
Metric Unit:	cm
Imperial Unit:	in

The Back Series is a series of four bas-relief sculptures, by Henri Matisse. They are Matisse's largest and most monumental sculptures. The plaster originals are housed in the Musée Matisse in Le Cateau-Cambrésis, France.

They were modeled between 1909 and 1930. Back (I) appeared in the second PostImpressionist show in London and the Armory Show in New York City.^[1]

All four sculptures were unique plaster casts until 1950, when Back (I), (III), and (IV) were cast in bronze. Back (II) was rediscovered in 1955, a year after the artist’s death, and then cast. The series have been cast in a bronze edition of twelve, including one for the artist's family. Nine complete sets are housed in nine major museums around the world:^[2]

• Musée National d'Art Moderne (Paris)^{[3] [4] [5] [6]}
• Tate (London)^{[7] [8] [9] [10]}
• Kunsthaus Zürich (Zürich)
• Staatsgalerie Stuttgart (Stuttgart)
• Museum of Modern Art (New York)^{[11] [12] [13] [14]}
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (Washington D. C.)^{[15] [16] [17] [18]}
• Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden (Los Angeles)^{[19] [20] [21] [22]}
• Kimbell Art Museum (Fort Worth)
• Lillie and Hugh Roy Cullen Sculpture Garden, Museum of Fine Arts (Houston)^{[23] [24] [25] [26]}

See also

• List of works by Henri Matisse
• List of public art in Houston

Notes and References

1. News: Hilary Spurling on Matisse's monolithic Back sculptures. Hilary Spurling. the Guardian. 12 May 2007 .
2. Web site: Lot Notes of Henri Matisse, The Back (IV). christies.com.
3. Web site: Henri Matisse, Nu de dos, premier état. centrepompidou.fr.
4. Web site: Henri Matisse, Nu de dos, deuxième état. centrepompidou.fr.
5. Web site: Henri Matisse, Nu de dos, troisième état. centrepompidou.fr.
6. Web site: Henri Matisse, Nu de dos, quatrième état. centrepompidou.fr.
7. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (I), Tate. tate.org.uk.
8. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (II), Tate. tate.org.uk.
9. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (III), Tate. tate.org.uk.
10. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (IV), Tate. tate.org.uk.
11. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (I), MoMA. MoMA.org.
12. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (II), MoMA. MoMA.org.
13. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (III), MoMA. MoMA.org.
14. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (IV), MoMA. MoMA.org.
15. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (I), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. hirshhorn.si.edu.
16. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (II), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. hirshhorn.si.edu.
17. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (III), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. hirshhorn.si.edu.
18. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (IV), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. hirshhorn.si.edu.
19. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (I), Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden. publicartinla.com.
20. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (II), Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden. publicartinla.com.
21. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (III), Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden. publicartinla.com.
22. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (IV), Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden. publicartinla.com.
23. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (I), MFAH. https://web.archive.org/web/20160307055613/https://collections.mfah.org/art/detail/5304. dead. 2016-03-07. mfah.org.
24. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (II), MFAH. https://web.archive.org/web/20160307065140/https://collections.mfah.org/art/detail/5305. dead. 2016-03-07. mfah.org.
25. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (III), MFAH. https://web.archive.org/web/20160307074524/https://collections.mfah.org/art/detail/5306. dead. 2016-03-07. mfah.org.
26. Web site: Henri Matisse, The Back (IV), MFAH. https://web.archive.org/web/20160307080413/https://collections.mfah.org/art/detail/5307. dead. 2016-03-07. mfah.org.