256 Quotes by Henri Matisse

The only valid thing in art is the one thing that cannot be explained, to explain away the mystery of a great painting would do irreplaceable harm, for whenever you explain or define something you substitute the explanation or the definition for the

There are wonderful things in real jazz, the talent for improvisation, the liveliness, the being at one with the audience.

Starting to paint, I felt gloriously free, quiet, and alone.

It is through the human figure that I best succeed in expressing the nearly religious feeling that I have towards life.

I'd like to introduce my color prints under the most favorable of conditions. For this reason I must separate them by intervals of a different character. I decided that handwriting was best suited for this purpose. The exceptional size of the writing

I did my sculpture as a painter. I did not work as a sculptor.

A certain blue enters your soul

Creation is the artist's true function; where there is no creation there is no art.

It is only after years of preparation that the young artist should touch color - not color used descriptively, that is, but as a means of personal expression.