Henri Matisse — Three Sisters

Matisse painted this work while staying in Paris during the First World War. Rather than depicting the three women exactly as they appeared, he was after the atmosphere of the three of them being together. It's composed like a portrait, but the emphasis falls less on precise facial detail and more on conveying the mood of that shared moment. Matisse became so absorbed in the subject that he painted three more works on the same theme. All four now belong to the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia.