Wide-ranging interest in the work and life of Matisse is clear from the spate of museum exhibitions held around the world in recent years. From side-by-side presentations with Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Joan Miró, in Philadelphia and Nice respectively, to a deep dive into The Red Studio (Fondation Louis Vuitton and MoMA), and his wildly popular “cut-outs” in 2015, fans and historians can’t seem to get enough.
Now, a recently opened show, Matisse and Marguerite: Through Her Father’s Eyes, running at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris through August 24, delves into fresh but no less important territory: his love for his eldest daughter. The show explores their lifelong bond and the many ways it inspired him—including dozens of portraits of his daughter. The show includes paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, and ceramics.
The works also serve as a window into history, with chronologically presented images ranging from her childhood to the end of World War II. More than 100 works are on view, many of which have rarely—if ever—been exhibited. Institutions in the United States, Switzerland, and Japan have loaned significant pieces. Photographs and archival materials provide an immersive look at their bond.
Family and Foundation
Marguerite Duthuit-Matisse was born in 1894. Her mother was the model Caroline Joblau, with whom Matisse was in a relationship before marrying Amélie Noellie Parayre, when Marguerite was four. She was raised by Matisse and Amélie alongside her two half-brothers, Jean and Pierre. Marguerite later wrote of their close-knit household: “We are like the five fingers of one hand.”
Marguerite circa 1915. Photographic archives of Henri Matisse. Credit: Henri Matisse archives
Meeting Marguerite Again
Isabelle Monod Fontaine, who has studied Matisse’s oeuvre for decades, co-curated the show with Hélène de Talhouët. Speaking by phone from Paris, Fontaine recalled meeting Marguerite in the mid-1970s, roughly seven years before her death.
“She impressed me very much, asking questions about paintings for the museum where I was working at the time,” Fontaine said. She described Marguerite as having “a very strong personality,” and likened the exhibition to “meeting” her again.
The show reveals the immense mutual trust and respect between Matisse and his daughter—and offers insight into the fascinating destiny of a singular woman who played a pivotal role in her father’s career.
Marguerite lisant Collioure, Summer 1906
Henri Matisse, Marguerite lisant Collioure, Summer 1906 Musée de Grenoble. Legs Agutte-Sembat, (1923). Credit: Ville de Grenoble / Musée de Grenoble-J.L. Lacroix
Matisse had already painted Marguerite in 1905’s Intérieur à la fillette, now at MoMA, when he made her the focus of several works executed in Collioure the following summer. In the Marguerite lisant Collioure, Summer 1906, Marguerite sits absorbed in a book, wearing a bright red dress and white collar, her bow matching her outfit as she leans thoughtfully on one hand.
Painted during a pivotal Fauvist phase, the portrait is notable for its intense palette and unmodeled brushwork. The composition’s calm intimacy balances the vibrant tones. It was shown at the 1906 Salon d’Automne and was admired by Marcel Sembat, who compared its luminosity to Velázquez.
Marguerite Collioure, hiver 1906-1907 (Spring 1907)
Henri Matisse, Marguerite (winter 1906-1907 or spring 1907). Musée national Picasso-Paris. Donation Picasso, 1978. Collection personnelle Pablo Picasso Credit: Grand palais RMN (musée national Picasso-Paris) / René-Gabriel Ojeda
As she transitioned into adolescence, Marguerite is depicted “proudly confronting the viewer,” according to the exhibition catalogue. A childhood bout of diphtheria left her requiring two tracheotomies. The resulting scar, often hidden by high collars or a black ribbon, became a defining motif. Her health kept her out of school, making her even more of a “studio kid.”
The stylized rendering—teal blouse, greenish-black hair, ochre background—reflects Matisse’s embrace of flat planes and expressive color. This particular painting was exchanged with Picasso in 1907, a gesture of mutual admiration during their early rivalry.
Marguerite au chat noir Issy-les-Moulineaux, (début 1910)
Henri Matisse, Marguerite au chat noir Issy-les-Moulineaux, early 1910. Paris, Centre Pompidou – Musée National d’Art Moderne / Centre de Création Industrielle. Gift of Madame Barbara Duthuit in memory of Claude Duthuit, 2013. Credit: © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Georges Meguerditchian.
Seated formally in a blue dress, Marguerite cradles a black cat and gazes directly outward, her expression more “defiant” than in earlier portraits. The high collar reappears, with the vibrant green and pink background accentuating her poised presence.
This stylized composition was exhibited in Berlin and at the 1913 Armory Show in New York, where it startled American audiences. Matisse kept the work until his death, signaling its personal importance. It was posthumously gifted by Barbara Duthuit, Marguerite’s daughter-in-law.
Tête blanche et rose Paris, quai Saint-Michel, (été 1914–début 1915)
Henri Matisse, Tête blanche et rose, Paris, Quai Saint-Michel, summer 1914 – early 1915. Paris, Centre Pompidou – Musée National d’Art Moderne / Centre de Création Industrielle. Acquired in 1976. Credit: © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Philippe Migeat.
In October 1912, Marguerite went to live with her aunt, Berthe Paraye, who ran a teachers’ training college in Ajaccio, Corsica. She had hoped to complete a degree, but the experience proved too challenging. In 1915, she returned to live with her parents and began painting.
This portrait, executed around 1915, shows her as an elegant young woman with a Cubist-inspired twist—her features simplified and stylized beneath an elaborate hat. It is part of a series of portraits that, according to the exhibition materials, “culminated in a highly geometric, austere, and unsettling painting: White and Pink Head.”
Created during the wartime years, the painting exemplifies a period when Matisse developed a radical, uncompromising style. Marguerite, with her characteristic strength, went along with him in that “new adventure, lending her face to a number of experiments” in painting, drawing, engraving, and sculpture.
Marguerite endormie Étretat, (été 1920)
Henri Matisse, Marguerite endormie Etretat, (Summer 1920). Private Collection. Credit: Private collection / © Martin Parsekian
After Marguerite underwent a second surgery in the summer of 1920, Matisse took her to Étretat in Normandy. The trip was intended both to help her regain strength in the invigorating seaside setting and to give him a chance to work on new subjects and portraits.
Amid her ongoing recovery, she often appeared exhausted, and this portrait captures her asleep—resting in a moment of vulnerability and peace. It is also the first image in which she does not wear a ribbon or high collar to hide the scar on her throat. “Her eyes closed and her throat finally liberated—a sweet and precious picture that shows a tenderness Matisse hardly ever expressed in paint, and reserved for his daughter,” the catalogue notes.
The artworks created during this sojourn mark a quiet turning point—a return to life, both for Marguerite and for their creative connection.
Marguerite Vence, (janvier 1945)
Henri Matisse, Marguerite Vence, January 1945 Private collection. Credit: Private collection / © Jean-Louis Losi
Though Marguerite married writer Georges Duthuit in 1923 and no longer appeared in her father’s work, she remained his trusted confidante and intermediary.
This 1945 drawing, created after a 20-year absence from his canvases, followed her harrowing experience in the French Resistance. Marguerite had joined the Francs-Tireurs et Partisans in January 1944 and was later arrested and deported—only to be liberated on August 26, 1944, just before crossing into Germany.
Matisse, who was frail and weakened by that point and staying in Vence was oblivious to his daughter’s clandestine activities. However, after months of silence, they were finally reunited in January 1945. “I identified so greatly with your memories that I was absolutely devastated,” Matisse stated. Along with several lithographs he made a few months later, this drawing marked the last time Marguerite appeared in her father’s oeuvre. More