Les Fauves (the wild beasts) was the nickname given in 1905 to a group of painters led by Henri Matisse. Today, their paintings are among the most popular of all twentieth-century art. Yet when Matisse and his friends - Derain, Vlaminck, Marquet, Dufy and Braque among them - first exhibited their work, the reaction of public and critics was astonishment and often hostility. Using strong, even strident, colours, applied in a manner deriving from Cezanne, Gauguin and Van Gogh, the Fauves took painting back to its basic principles, inspired by primitive art, popular prints and children's paintings, and paved the way to Cubism. The artists, their work, their relationship, their achievements and the critical and commercial response to their work are all discussed in this absorbing book.

'A remarkable, comprehensive achievement' The New York Times Book Review

About the Author
Sarah Whitfield is an art historian, writer and curator. She is co-author of the Rene Magritte Catalogue Raisonne, and serves on the authentication committee for the Estate of Francis Bacon.


Book Information
ISBN 9780500202272
Author Sarah Whitfield
Format Paperback
Page Count 216
Imprint Thames & Hudson Ltd
Publisher Thames & Hudson Ltd
Weight(grams) 420g