Matisse's American Patrons

The traveling exhibition of gouache cutouts done by Henri Matisse in his last years has been admired lately in Manhattan and Chicago, but at San Francisco's Museum of Art last week the show had a unique and poignant meaning. One room contained a separate exhibit of more than 75 items, ranging from oils to tiles, that were also mostly by Matisse. Though now owned by many collectors, these treasures were once a part of one of the earliest and most significant collections of 20th century art. They belonged to San Francisco's Michael and Sarah Stein (brother and sister-in-law of Gertrude and...