A major reassessment of a critical moment in the work of one of the 20th century's most important artists The works that Henri Matisse (1869-1954) executed between late 1913 and 1917 are among his most demanding, experimental, and enigmatic. Often sharply composed, heavily reworked, and dominated by the colors black and gray, these compositions are rigorously abstracted and purged of nearly all descriptive detail. Although they have typically been treated as unrelated to one another, as aberrations within the artist's oeuvre, or as singular responses to Cubism or World War I, Matisse: Radical Invention, 1913-1917 reveals the deep connections among them and their critical role in an ambitious, cohesive project that took the act of creation itself as its main focus. This book represents the first sustained examination of Matisse's output from this important period, revealing fascinating information about his working method, experimental techniques, and compositional choices uncovered through extensive new historical, technical, and scientific research. The lavishly illustrated volume is published to accompany a major exhibition consisting of approximately 125 paintings, sculptures, drawings, and prints. It features in-depth studies of individual works such as Bathers by a River and The Moroccans, which Matisse himself counted as among the most pivotal of his career, and facilitates a greater understanding of the artist's innovative process and radical stylistic evolution. Distributed for the Art Institute of Chicago Exhibition Schedule: Art Institute of Chicago (March 20 - June 6, 2010) Museum of Modern Art, New York (July 18 - October 11, 2010)

A completely new way of looking at and understanding Surrealism, with a focus on the worldwide sweep of the movement "The variety of discoveries, detailed with exceptional scholarship in a ravishing keeper of a catalogue, defeat generalization."-Peter Schjeldahl, New Yorker This groundbreaking book challenges conventional narratives of Surrealism, tracing its impact and legacy from the 1920s to the late 1970s in places as diverse as Colombia, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, Japan, Mexico, the Philippines, Romania, Syria, Thailand, and Turkey. In doing so, it presents a more inclusive and accurate understanding of the fundamentally international character and lasting significance of the revolutionary artistic, literary, and philosophical movement. Vibrantly illustrated with more than 300 works of art by both well-known figures-including Dali, Ernst, Kahlo, Magritte, and Miro-and numerous underrepresented artists, this expansive book pushes beyond the borders of history, geography, and nationality to provocatively redraw the map of the Surrealist movement, investigating how its visual languages, ideals, theories, and practices were framed or reframed in contexts far from its Parisian origins. Contributions from more than 40 distinguished international scholars explore themes such as the channels used to transmit ideas; artists' responses to the challenges of political oppression, social unrest, and the effects of colonialism; and experiences of displacement and exile in the twentieth century. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press Exhibition Schedule: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (October 4, 2021-January 30, 2022) Tate Modern, London (February 25-August 29, 2022)

The Metropolitan Museum Journal is issued annually and publishes original research on works of art in the Museum's collection. Highlights of volume 54 include conservators' discoveries of Renaissance sculptor Andrea della Robbia's workshop techniques, a new reading of lavishly dressed women on tile panels from 17th-century Iran as courtesans, and John Singer Sargent's decisive role in choosing his socialite sitters' fashionable dress.

The Art Institute of Chicago's opportunity to host the International Exhibition of Modern Art, better known as the Armory Show, in 1913 set a radical new course for modern and contemporary art in the United States. This monumental exhibition introduced audiences to some of the greatest avant-garde artists working in Europe, and forever changed the aesthetic landscape for artists, critics, collectors, and arts institutions. This fascinating publication brings together over 130 masterpieces from the Art Institute, which holds one of the finest collections of modern art in North America. Following an introductory essay by Stephanie D'Alessandro on the history of collecting modern art at the Art Institute, the masterworks of the museum's collection are presented in discrete sections devoted to important movements such as Expressionism, Cubism, Dada, Abstraction, and Surrealism, and to individual artists such as Brancusi, Chagall, Kandinsky, Leger, Matisse, and Picasso, as well as the remarkable American artist Joseph Cornell. Distributed for The Art Institute of Chicago