40 - Hélène ADANT (1903–1985), attributed to.

Hélène ADANT (1903–1985), attributed to. Photograph of Henri Matisse (1869–1954) and Paule Caen-Martin. Black-and-white silver print. Inscribed “Matisse and Paulette” and “Oct. 54” on the back. H. 8.2 x W. 8.2 cm. Provenance: Paule Caen-Martin, known as “Paulette,” Matisse’s secretary, then passed down through her descendants. Includes two prints likely made at a later date, one in color (13.1 x 12.6 cm) and the other in black and white (5.5 x 5.5 cm), the latter of which has a tear. This photograph depicts Henri Matisse and his assistant, Paule Caen-Martin, in his studio at the Hôtel Régina in Nice in the early 1950s. Paule Caen-Martin served as Matisse’s studio assistant during the late period of his creative work. In this context, she was particularly involved in the physical process of creating the cut-out gouaches. The photograph shows the two of them in the artist’s bedroom, with the work “La Perruche et la Sirène” in the background (1952–1953, cut-out gouaches, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam). Paule Caen-Martin remained closely associated with Matisse for many years afterward, as she was one of the contributors to the exhibition catalog “Lydia D.: Lydia Delectorskaya: Matisse’s Muse and Model,” held at the Matisse Departmental Museum in Le Cateau-Cambrésis and later at the Matisse Museum in Nice.