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Art Analysis Of Henri Matisse's The Rose Marble Table

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This formal and historical art analysis will define the color, composition, line, and values of the revolutionary modernist painting “The Rose Marble Table” (1917) by Henri Matisse. Matisse utilizes a modernist approach to this painting by presenting a minimalist approach to the placement of the rose and the table, which presents a very basic color scheme. The strong lines of the painting define the simplistic presentation of a sculptured object of beauty, which is nestled in various flora at the fringes of the composition. More so, Matisse’s modernist approach defines the perspective of detachment from social norms, which occurred during the First World War. Matisse sought to present an internalized vision of beauty that would not allow the horrors of war to impede his vision of beauty. This internalized view defines the revolutionary focus of Matisse’s work, since he did not allow the enteral issues of the world to influence the subject matter of his paintings. In essence, a formal and historical analysis of the revolutionary spirit of modernism will be examined in Henri Matisse’s “The Rose Marble Table.” In formal terms, Matisse’s “The Rose Marble Table” is a presented as a two-dimensional style of painting in the modernist style of the early 20th century. The rose marble table at the center of the composition is seen with the top of the table fully exposed, and the lower base of the table that extends below it. This central positioning of the table provides a compositional approach that makes the colorful values of the table come forth in contrast to the dark brown background. More so, the placement of a basket on the table and few small fruits provides some evidence of depth perception, although they are also presents in a very two-dimensional style. In the background, the black stems of trees and ivy vines provide a fringe accent to the painting, as ivy covers the base of the table and is seen at the upper right side of the painting. These organic parts of the painting define a more realistic presentation of flora, which contrasts the more two-dimensional aspects of the rose table at the center of the painting. This type of compositional arrangement blends the modernist shape of the table as a

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