Lifestyle

How to follow Henri Matisse’s footsteps along the French Riviera



Henri Matisse was born in northern France, the son of a merchant, and studied law in Paris before, aged 20, embarking on the path that led him to become one of France’s best-loved modernist painters. His work in the capital and travels in the 1890s were when he began to develop the love of bold colour for which he has become known — but it was the South of France that really captivated and inspired him.

It was where he chose to stay for 37 years, and where he created many of greatest works. A visit to the Côte d’Azur is an off-season delight for anyone, but lovers of Matisse are in for a real treat — especially this month, the 150th anniversary of his birth. Watching even the weak winter light create coloured patterns on the floor of the Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence, just an hour’s bus journey from chic Nice, it’s easy to imagine a blossoming of spirituality in the twilight years of the artist who created it.

Matisse’s former nurse and erstwhile muse, Monique Bourgeois, chose to enter the Dominican convent in Vence in 1943. It had no chapel of its own, so she asked her former employer and friend, now virtually bedridden and in his late seventies, to help. The result is the culmination of the artist’s entire career, spanning everything from a mural of the Stations of the Cross, to the stained glass and candlesticks in the chapel, to several sets of chasubles. With a museum filled with preparatory works, and just a 20-minute walk from the town that takes you past the artist’s house Villa le Rêve, the uniquely serene chapel is a must-see.

Vence, where Matisse spent the last four years of his life, is well worth the bus journey from Nice — a bargain at just €1.50. On the edge of the pretty walled old town, the Musée de Vence/Fondation Emile Hugues is another Matisse hotspot. It’s home to a number of important studies and works, including pages from the book Jazz, and just a few paces from the art-filled boutique hotel La Maison du Frêne (lamaisondufrene.com). Down by the coast in Nice, the artist’s journey towards the chapel is clear to see.

Strolling along the palm tree-lined Promenade des Anglais, it’s easy to assume a connection between the vibrant blue of the sky and Matisse’s frequent use of that particular hue, especially in his later works. Even during the winter it’s positively eyewatering. In fact, the artist first arrived in the winter of 1917, remaining in his room at the Hotel Beau Rivage (hotelnicebeaurivage.com) due to the cold weather. He wrote to his wife Amélie back in Paris “from my open window you can see the top of a palm tree” and “sky and sea blue — blue — blue”.

He initially intended to only remain there for a month to recover from bronchitis, but was so enraptured by the light when the sun finally came out that he chose to stay. He wrote: “When I realised that every morning I would see this light again, I couldn’t believe how lucky I was.” Matisse didn’t move far from the Hôtel Beau Rivage. He took studio space just around the corner on the seafront Quai des États-Unis and then a suite at the marvellously over-the-top art deco confection Palais de la Méditerranée — now the Hyatt Regency Nice — just a touch further along the Promenade des Anglais.

Not far from the glamorous promenade, a wander around Nice’s immensely popular Old Town gives a glimpse of what day-to-day life might have been like for the artist. Pavement cafés bustle at every turn and I’d like to imagine he might have eaten Niçois specialities such as pissaladière and raviolis at friendly restaurant Chez Acchiardo (it’s been family-run since 1927). 

The Musée Matisse in Nice (Lara Dunn)

Taking the bargain bus up to Cimiez avoids a lengthy uphill walk. The Musée Matisse (with its own bus stop) houses one of the world’s most extensive collections of works by the artist, and both the museum and the 17th-century Villa des Arènes in which it sits are a fascinating way to spend a couple of hours. The museum sits in the grounds surrounding a Roman amphitheatre, just across the road from the opulent Regina where Matisse rented two third-floor apartments from 1938. Originally built as a luxury hotel to welcome Queen Victoria, the Regina has been private apartments for some time now.

A wander through the centuries-old olive groves near the amphitheatre leads to Cimiez Monastery and Matisse’s grave. A simple tomb, shared with Amélie (despite the fact that she divorced him in 1939 for suspected infidelity) sits on a terrace of its own. From the monastery gardens, the glitter of the coast is just visible, not far from the old port where Matisse reputedly used to canoe every day. It seems a fitting final resting place. 

Details:

easyJet fly from the UK to Nice from £14.49 one way (easyjet.com). For more information visit en.nicetourisme.com



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