Srinagar, July 25 -- In the final decade of his life, Henri Matisse revolutionized his own art practice with a pair of scissors. No longer able to paint due to ill health, he turned to paper cut-outs, creating a striking body of work that became as iconic as his earlier paintings. These vibrant paper collages, often referred to as "cut-outs" or gouaches decoupees, showcased Matisse's enduring love for color, form, and rhythm in a bold new medium.

Rather than seeing his physical limitations as a setback, Matisse embraced them, inventing a new method of "drawing with scissors." He would paint sheets of paper with bright gouache and then cut them into organic shapes-flames, leaves, coral, dancers, and stars-which were arranged into composit...