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Matisse in Morocco: The Paintings and Drawings, 1912-1913

March 18 – June 3, 1990
East Building, Mezzanine, Northwest, West Bridge

Henri Matisse, Palm Leaf, Tangier, 1912, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Fund, 1978.73.1

This exhibition is no longer on view at the National Gallery.

Overview: 23 paintings, 47 drawings, and a letter were on view, produced by Matisse during his visits to Morocco in early 1912 and in the winter of 1912-1913. The exhibition was collectively organized by the National Gallery of Art; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow; and the Hermitage Museum, Leningrad. On crowded weekdays and weekends free exhibition passes were distributed as necessary on a first-come, first-served basis.

Organization: Jack Cowart, curator of 20th-century art at the National Gallery, and Pierre Schneider, guest scholar, were the exhibition curators. They were assisted by John Elderfield, director of the department of drawings at the Museum of Modern Art; Albert Kostenevich, chief curator of modern European painting at the Hermitage Museum; and Marina Bessonova, curator of modern French painting at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. Gaillard Ravenel and Mark Leithauser designed the exhibition, and Gordon Anson designed the lighting.

Sponsor: The Richard King Mellon Foundation supported the exhibition, and additional support was provided by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Attendance: 274,772

Catalog: Matisse in Morocco: The Paintings and Drawings, 1912-1913, by Jack Cowart et al. Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art, 1990.

Brochure: Matisse in Morocco: The Paintings and Drawings, 1912-1913. Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art, 1990.

Other Venues: Museum of Modern Art, New York, June 24–September 4, 1990
Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow, September 28–November 20, 1990
Hermitage Museum, Leningrad, December 15, 1990–February 15, 1991

Matisse, Henri
French, 1869 - 1954