Matisse first used cut paper shapes to work out the arrangement of objects in his paintings. Making cut paper shapes and using a canvas as a pin board meant he could rearrange the various elements more easily.

In the late 1940s, Henri Matisse turned almost exclusively to cut paper as his primary medium and scissors as his chief implement. He introduced a radically new operation that came to be called a cut-out…even Picasso was envious of the new art form.

Matisse would cut painted sheets into forms of varying shapes and sizes which he then arranged into lively compositions.  Initially, these compositions were of modest size but, over time, their scale grew.

A brilliant final chapter in Matisse’s long career, the cut-outs reflect both a renewed commitment to form and color and an inventiveness.

This retropsective is the largest and most extensive presentation of the cut-outs ever mounted from public and private collections. The last time New York audiences were treated to an in-depth look at the cut-outs was in 1961.

This exhibition was sparked by an initiative to conserve The Museum of Modern Art’s monumental cut-out, The Swimming Pool (1952), a favorite of visitors since its acquisition by MoMA in 1975.

The Swimming Pool is the only cut-out composed for a specific room which was the artist’s dining room in his apartment in Nice, France. Newly conserved, it has been out of sight for more than 20 years.

The Swimming Pool, which has it’s own room in the exhibit and is hung exactly 5 1/2 feet above the floor as Matisse had directed, returns to MoMA’s galleries as a centerpiece of the exhibition.

All 100 cut-outs are visually exciting, convey movement and not one should be passed over.

I left the exhibit feeling culturally elevated, stimulated by the craftsmanship, color and beauty. This exhibit made me Happy.

Do not deny yourself.

Matisse Cut-Outs The Museum of Modern Art, 11 West 53rd Street NYC. Timed tickets are required the Matisse Cut-Outs exhibit for non-members. The cost is $25. October 12, 2014-February 8, 2015. Open daily 10:30am-5:30pm except Friday when the museum is open until 8pm and free admission after 4pm.