From 28th October 2026 to 18th January 2027, the Musée Matisse Nice will present ‘Henri Matisse – Alex Katz. Le silence de la peinture’, an autumn exhibition exploring the contemporary reception of Henri Matisse’s work through the lens of leading American painter Alex Katz.
Conceived in collaboration with the artist following his visit to the museum in 2024, the exhibition places Katz’s works in direct dialogue with the permanent collections.
A lasting transatlantic connection
The artistic link between Matisse and Katz traces back to February 1949, when Katz—then a student at Manhattan’s Cooper Union—discovered an exhibition of Matisse’s recent works at Pierre Matisse Gallery. Paintings such as Nature morte aux grenades (1947) and Le silence habité des maisons (1947), alongside brush drawings and cut-out watercolours, left a profound aesthetic impression on the young artist. This connection is anchored in a long history of cultural exchange between France and the United States, amplified by Matisse’s own 1930 trip to New York. Struck by the city’s unique visual power, Matisse remarked that “New York light is exceptionally beautiful, and then these towers, these masses rising in the air, in this light which is like crystals”.
He famously predicted: “You will understand, when you see America, that one day they will have painters, because it is not possible, in such a country, which offers such dazzling visual spectacles, that there won’t be painters one day.”
Throughout his career, Katz has drawn ongoing inspiration from the French master, particularly in his handling of light and colour.
Shared artistic vocabulary
Born in Brooklyn in 1927, Katz developed a singular figurative style distinct from the dominant abstract expressionism of mid-century American art. Focusing on traditional genres such as landscape, floral still life, and human figures, his large-scale canvases and flat areas of colour share common ground with both pop art and Matisse’s aesthetic principles. Both artists rely on simplified forms, flattened spatial planes without perspective, and a rigorous elimination of non-essential detail to privilege immediate visual impact and sensory experience.
Exhibition highlights and visitor information
Curated by Aymeric Jeudy, Director of the Musée Matisse Nice, the showcase spans Katz’s career from his early 1951 work Nude to recent 2025 pieces like Lilies 13, featuring an extensive selection of paintings, drawings, prints, and cut-outs.
The museum is open daily except Tuesdays, from 10am to 6pm, with closing hours adjusted to 5pm from 1st November.
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Alex Katz, Reclining Bather, 1960 (oil on cardboard). Photo credit: Alex Katz / Adagp, Paris, 2026