What Inspired the Matisse Blues Collection?
Known for his use of bold, saturated color, Henri Matisse is one of the masters of modern art. While most of us are familiar with his late-career collaged pieces — vibrant, abstracted cut-out forms — one painting serves as the primary inspiration for the Matisse Blues Collection: Still Life With a Blue Tablecloth (1909).
Showing off a surface of swirling color, Matisse's love of brilliant hues, so present in his "Fauve" period, is on full view in this composition.
Is it any wonder that we are drawn to these exuberant blues? In this palette, can’t we see Mother Nature's paintbrush at work — in her shimmering kyanites, her audacious apatites, and her luminous aquamarines?
And who could resist her teal chrysocolla stones speckled with coppery-red flecks of cuprite? 
Energized, free-flowing patterning (seen above in the tablecloth) is characteristic of many of Matisse's most well-known artworks, suggesting vitality and movement. These elements motivated the use of abstracted and organic forms in this collection's designs, including tumbled irregular stones, nugget pearls, and sterling triangle, circle and oval links.
Equally present in this collection — the occasional touch of black (black tourmaline and black spinel) as well as white (cultured freshwater pearls), as in the painting.
Intended for layering or wearing on their own, each one-of-a-kind asymmetrical necklace is specifically designed to include negative space through the use of sterling links, some highly polished and others lightly oxidized. (As in a painting or a gallery show, the eye needs a place to rest.)
In addition, links are strategically placed to provide multiple options for clasping with the toggle bar, which fits securely through both the ovals and the triangles.
Bracelets are also designed to set off saturated gemstone colors with negative space, achieved through double rows of tiny faceted gemstones executed in two formats, and textured sterling silver links.
Materials used throughout this collection include neon apatite, blue apatite, aquamarine, amazonite, chrysocolla with cuprite, kyanite, cultured freshwater pearls (nuggets and rice pearls), black tourmaline, black spinel and sterling silver.
My hope — not only that the jewelry in this collection captures the sensual quality and energy of Matisse’s mastery of color and composition — but that knowing its inspiration will add to your pleasure when you wear it.
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Partial painting image above: Still Life With a Blue Tablecloth (1909), Henri Matisse; p. 143, “From Poussin to Matisse: The Russian Taste for French Painting”; Harry N. Abrams; Art Institute of Chicago (1990).
Jewelry shown:
- Matisse Blues 21" Multi-Gemstone Necklace
- Matisse Blues 24" Multi-Gemstone Necklace
- Matisse Blues 28" Multi-Gemstone Necklace
- Matisse Blues bracelets (several)