Study of Legs (Étude de jambes)

Study of Legs (Étude de jambes) by Henri Matisse is a lithograph created in 1925, embodying the French master’s enduring commitment to the classical figure study within the context of modernist printmaking. This period, characterized by the artist’s residence in Nice, saw Matisse move away from the intense chromatic experimentation of his earlier years toward a renewed focus on line economy, anatomical precision, and structured composition.

The subject matter, featuring a close-up, cropped view of the model’s legs, emphasizes the sculptural quality of the human form. Matisse treats the legs not merely as components of a figure but as independent masses defined by subtle curves and powerful musculature. Through the lithograph medium, the artist captures the immediacy of a chalk or pencil drawing, utilizing the sensitivity of the stone to render varied line weights—from the faint, feathery strokes suggesting background contour to the heavy, descriptive lines that anchor the knee and ankle structure.

As a printmaker, Matisse skillfully employed the characteristics inherent to the lithograph process, allowing him to explore shading through cross-hatching and subtle washes, giving the work a depth that elevates it beyond a mere preliminary sketch. Study of Legs exemplifies how prints served as a vital vehicle for Matisse's continuous investigation into the nude form during the mid-1920s, bridging his earlier dynamic compositions with the rigorous simplification that would define his later work.

This sophisticated representation of the figure by the celebrated French artist highlights the formal concerns that dominated European art following World War I. The inclusion of this important work in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) ensures its continued accessibility for scholars examining Matisse’s prolific output across various media.