The exhibition, MATISSE, 1941-1954, sheds light on the final years of Henri Matisse's career, between 1941 and 1954, through more than 300 works - paintings, drawings, cut-out gouaches, illustrated books, textiles and stained glass - from the Centre Pompidou collection and major international loans.

At nearly eighty years old, Matisse reinvented himself through the medium of the cut-out gouache — which he elevated into an autonomous visual language. Adapted both to reproduction and to monumental commissions, this technique allowed him to fully express the decorative dimension of his art.

Among the major ensembles gathered at the Grand Palais are the majestic Intérieurs de Vence series from 1947-1948, the album Jazz, the series of Thèmes et variations as well as the brush-and-ink drawings; the main elements of the Chapelle de Vence program and the great cut-out figures: La Tristesse du roi, Zulma, La Danseuse créole and the famous Blue Nudes.