Matisse was born in Le Cateau-Cambresis, northern France, on 31 December 1868 and died in Nice on 3 November 1954. He originally studied law in Paris, from 1887-9, returning home to work as a law clerk. He also attended early-morning classes at a local art school.
In 1890 he was bed ridden for an extended period after appendicitis. His mother bought him some oil paints and he began to paint during his recovery. He persuaded his father to let him study art and moved to Paris, where he enrolled at the Academie Julian.
