The name of Henri Matisse, the “wild man” of the avant- garde, is familiar to all. However, unknown to many is Académie Matisse, where he taught students for three years between 1908 and 1911. Even more surprising still, is that more than half the intake were Swedish or Norwegian. Many of these painters would go back to their native countries, having experienced Paris and the fierce critique of Matisse, to partake in the breakthrough of modernism.
In this exhibition we explore work by artists prior, during and post the punctuation point that was Académie Matisse. Experimenting with concepts of color, form and line they transformed the trajectory of Nordic art, nevertheless, many have yet to be revived from the shadows of time.