Henri Matisse was a founding figure of modern painting and one of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century. This book features eleven paintings, sculptures, and works on paper by Matisse selected from The Museum of Modern Art's substantial collection of his work. His breakthrough Fauvist painting La Japonaise is here, along with such well-known works as Dance (I), The Red Studio, and The Piano Lesson. Important examples of Matisse's sculpture are included among the paintings, leading to the paper cutouts of his final years. A lively essay by Carolyn Lanchner, a former curator of painting and sculpture at the Museum, accompanies each work, illuminating its significance and placing it in its historical moment in the development of modern art and in Matisse's own life. 48 pp.; 30 illus.