A Message from an Artist...Without Any Messages?

"Seek the strongest color effect possible...the content is of no importance."

Fine words spoken by Henri Matisse. But are they really true? Is the content of a piece of art "of no importance"? I thought I'd take a look at different works by Matisse and see if they looked as though they had no true content. 

The Dance

Le bonheur de vivre

Harmony in Red

Perhaps Matisse had intended for the content of these pieces to be of negligible importance. And each piece does seem to emphasize and prioritize color. But even I'm not sure the content of the painting isn't important. Perhaps the intention of Matisse doesn't fully matter. But I would imagine that the content does entirely. Matisse's The Dance is beautiful. But it also has a narrative. I don't think you can say that the content of this piece isn't important. I don't know what the content what intended to be, and I don't necessarily want to know. I can have my own interpretation of the work and be satisfied. So maybe that is what Matisse was saying--knowing the content that the artist intends for isn't important. But I think that trying to understand what is happening in the piece would give it another layer of depth. 


"Creativity takes courage."
Another quote by Matisse. Perhaps this courage he speaks of is telling a story, or sending a message in your work--in your creation.