Yaneff.com

Published by the French Tourism office to help promote tourism in the South of France. Printed by Atelier Mourlot. 

The design was originally Created by Matisse in 1950, Creole Dancer was one of Matisse’s favorite pieces. Matisse based the cut-out figure on Katherine Dunham, an American dancer and choreographer, whose modern dance routines were influenced by dances from Africa and Haiti. Katherine Dunham was a dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist who has been called the “matriarch and queen mother of Black dance.” Ms. Dunham had been invited to perform in Matisse’s studio. He created Creole Dancer from the sketches he made while she was dancing. The work was completed in a single day, using left over bits of paper. It was a 1953 gift from Henri Matisse to Musée Matisse in Nice.
 Katherine Dunham the queen mother of Black dance

"Many critics consider this to be Matisse's most innovative period. He had begun to experience severe arthritis and had a bout with cancer which forced him to be confined in a wheelchair.
He could no longer stand to paint, so instead he created paintings with scissors by cutting pieces of colorful paper and gluing them onto larger pieces of paper with the help of his assistants.They were called « gouaches découpées » (cutouts). Danseuse Créole is a fine example of this style, with its use of stunning colors and shapes to create a scene." (henrimatisse.org).