Afternoon of a Faun (The Concert) [L'Après-midi d'un faune (le concert)]

1932

Etching

32.7 × 24.8 cm (12.9 × 9.8 in)

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In the collection of Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia — check current display status with the museum.

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Discussion

FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG

Matisse originally meant for this etching to appear as an illustration in a book of poetry by the great French symbolist writer Mallarmé. Afternoon of a Faun tells the story of a faun who awakens from a dream in which he believes he remembered raping two nymphs only to fall asleep again and encounter the nymphs once more. This composition is closer in subject matter to The Joy of Life (BF719) than any of the Mallarmé illustrations—a satyr plays his pipes in the foreground, two figures relax in the middle ground, and three figures dance in the distance.

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