Henri Matisse (Primary Title)
Man Ray, American, 1890 - 1976 (Artist)
One of modern art’s great colorists, Henri Matisse (1869–1954) posed for Man Ray’s camera while seated in a wicker armchair in his apartment and studio at 19 Quai Saint-Michel in Paris. Unfortunately, Man Ray forgot to bring his camera lens when he visited the French artist and had to improvise by using his eyeglasses. “I knew that my lens had a 12 inch focal length,” Man Ray later recalled, so he taped his glasses onto the opening in his camera, which resulted in “a beautiful soft-focus photograph with all the details visible in it too.”
Stamp in black ink on verso: "Man Ray 31 bis, Rue/ Campagne/ Première/ Paris XIVe".
Inscribed, possibly by the photographer, in graphite on verso: "Matisse".
Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Endowment
Man Ray: The Paris Years, VMFA, October 30, 2021 – February 21, 2022
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