SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Raised in the textile town of Bohain in northeastern France, Matisse had a lifelong fascination with fabrics, which he collected for inspiration. Over the years, he amassed such varied pieces as “African velvets” (Kuba raffia cloth), Arab embroideries, Romanian blouses and couture gowns. One of his most beloved acquisitions was a length of blue and white cotton spotted in the window of a secondhand shop from aboard a Paris bus; its pattern would appear time and again in his art. An early example is “Pansies” (1903), above, one of 135 works on view in THE MASTERPIECES OF FRENCH PAINTING FROM THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, 1800-1920, which opens this winter at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The largest loan of its kind in the Met’s history, the show offers an overview of the major trends of the period, from the neoclassicism of Ingres to the realism of Courbet to the protocubism of Picasso. At its heart is a selection of some 50 Impressionist masterworks. Feb. 4 through May 6. mfah.org

Columbus
DEGAS LANDSCAPES
Best known as a master of the human figure, Degas also turned his talents to landscape art; in fact, his first solo show was devoted to innovative oil monotypes in that genre. Edgar Degas: The Last Landscapes explores this little-known aspect of the artist’s oeuvre, with particular focus on a suite of paintings of Saint-Valéry-sur-Somme, a seaside resort in northern France. Through Jan. 21 at the Columbus Museum of Art. degaslandscapes.com

Washington, D.C.
CHARPENTIER
Successful in his time but little known today, the medalist and sculptor Alexandre Charpentier was an innovator in the art of bas relief, experimenting with different styles and subjects and working with materials as varied as silver, terra cotta and leather. Alexandre-Louis-Marie Charpentier (1856-1909), the first exhibit devoted to the artist since his death, illustrates his versatility through 59 objects ranging from a portrait of writer Emile Zola to a crumb brush. Through Jan. 28 at the National Gallery of Art. nga.gov

New York
AMERICANS IN PARIS
In the late 1860s, Paris was the center of the Western art world, drawing students to its prestigious schools and established artists to its international exhibitions. Americans in Paris, 1860-1900 offers a global view of artistic development in the French capital and looks at how American painters adapted French styles to their own pieces once they returned home. Through Jan. 28 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. metmuseum.org

New York
MEDIEVAL SCULPTURE
Set in Stone: The Face in Medieval Sculpture presents more than 80 sculpted heads, some removed from statues during periods of iconoclasm, others created as decorations, portraits or devotional objects. Spanning the 3rd century through the early 1500s, the exhibit examines these objects from a variety of perspectives, from the biblical to the high tech. Through Feb. 18 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. metmuseum.org

Bartlesville, OK
RAYMOND LOEWY
After arriving in New York from France in 1919, Raymond Loewy first found success as a commercial artist and later as a pioneer in the growing field of industrial design. Raymond Loewy: Designs for a Consumer Culture, at the Price Tower Arts Center, includes a jukebox as well as locomotive and car designs, and also showcases his collaboration with John F. Kennedy for the re-design of Air Force One. Through March 4. pricetower.org

Boston
FASHION SHOW
Fashion Show: Paris Collections 2006 showcases pieces from the spring and fall/winter collections of 10 of the most celebrated names in the industry, among them Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, John Galliano for Christian Dior, Christian Lacroix, Valentino and Yohji Yamamoto. The exhibit explores fashion as fine art and the French capital’s enduring role as a mecca for its practitioners. Through March 18 at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. mfa.org

Worcester, MA
LA BELLE EPOQUE
La Belle Epoque: Works on Paper, 1885-1915 at the Worcester Art Museum features prints, drawings and photographs from the Belle Epoque, when the French styles of Realism, Impressionism, Orientalism and Art Nouveau influenced art and fashion throughout the West. The exhibition works are drawn from the permanent collection by such artists as Auguste Renoir, James McNeil Whistler, Edgar Degas and Eugène Atget. Through March 28. worcesterart.org

Columbus
LE CORBUSIER
Architecture Interruptus commemorates the long-delayed completion of the Eglise Saint-Pierre in Firminy, France. Designed by Le Corbusier in the early 1960s, the church was begun in 1970, five years after his death, then left unfinished for financial reasons. The architect José Oubrerie, who worked on the plans as a young man, eventually took over the project, prompting a debate about the meaning of architectural authorship. In addition to a large-scale model of the church, the exhibit includes recent drawings and photographs juxtaposed against original plans and sketches. Jan. 26 through April 15 at the Wexner Center for the Arts. wexarts.org

Los Angeles
18TH-CENTURY SILVER
Like his father and grandfather before him, François-Thomas Germain was orfèvre to the French king, supplying the courts of 18th-century Europe with elaborate silver and gold wares. Casting Nature: François-Thomas Germain’s Machine d’Argent showcases a formal centerpiece designed to complement a series of hunt- and animal-themed paintings. Contemporaneous paintings, drawings and prints provide art historical context. Through March 25 at the J. Paul Getty Museum. getty.edu

New York
EUROPEAN MASTER DRAWINGS
Private Treasures: Four Centuries of European Master Drawings, at the Morgan Library and Museum, features many works from 17th-19th century French artists, including Antoine Watteau, Claude Lorrain, Jean-Honoré Fragonard and Odilon Redon. Through April 8. themorgan.org

Chicago
EUGENE DELACROIX AND NORTH AFRICA
Drawn from the Art Institute’s permanent collection, this installation consists of six etchings and one drawing by Eugène Delacroix, all exploring the French Romantic fascination with the Arabic cultures of North Africa. Through April 13. artic.edu

Dallas
MATISSE
The double-venue exhibition Matisse: Painter as Sculptor explores the artist’s achievements in the three-dimensional form within the context of his own varied oeuvre and in comparison to the work of other modern masters, such as Brancusi, Degas and Giacometti. More than 150 sculptures, paintings, works on paper, and photographs of the artist at work are grouped thematically to illustrate the interplay among the various media. Interactive video programs using advanced three-dimensional imaging technology shed further light on Matisse’s creative process. Jan. 21 through April 29 at the Dallas Museum of Art and the Nasher Sculpture Center. dallasmuseumofart.org or nashersculpturecenter.org

New York
HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON
After being imprisoned in a German prisoner of war camp for three years, Cartier-Bresson was presumed dead and the MoMA began organizing a retrospective tribute. When it was discovered that he was in fact still alive, Cartier-Bresson began helping with the exhibit and brought to New York a scrapbook of photographs that he deemed his most significant. Henri Cartier-Bresson’s Scrapbook Photographs, 1932-46, on view at the International Center of Photography offers a rare glimpse of the photographer’s early work. The exhibition includes 331 original images printed in 1946 by Cartier-Bresson as well as fifteen modern prints, and larger prints made for the MoMA 1947 retrospective. Through April 29. icp.org

Williamstown
CLAUDE LORRAIN
The 17th-century artist Claude Lorrain spent most of his life in Rome, drawing inspiration from the surrounding countryside and elevating the genre of landscape painting through his classical compositions. His many drawings, from quick sketches to elaborate designs for paintings, offer insight into his craft; he even kept a portfolio, known as the “Liber Veritatis,” or “Book of Truth,” in which he documented his paintings so as to foil forgers. Audiences can view 85 of his works on paper along with 15 paintings in Claude Lorrain—The Painter as Draftsman: Drawings from the British Museum. Feb. 4 through April 29 at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, MA. clarkart.edu

Washington, D.C.
PARIS PHOTOS
Paris in Transition: Photographs from the National Gallery of Art presents 19th- and early 20th-century works by such pioneers in the medium as Le Gray, Kertész, Brassaï and Atget. In addition to illustrating the important role Paris played in the evolution of French photography, the images reflect a variety of responses to modernization, from excitement to nostalgia. Feb. 11 through May 6 at the National Gallery of Art. nga.gov

Baltimore
BARYE
Untamed: The Art of Antoine-Louis Barye honors the leading animal sculptor of the 19th century, dubbed “Michelangelo of the Menagerie” by art critic Théophile Gautier. Portraying creatures both wild and domesticated, Barye demonstrated a masterful ability to capture naturalistic detail. Like his fellow Romantics, he had a taste for both the dramatic and the exotic, which found expression in his many scenes of animals in combat. The vast selection of works on view includes not only sculptures but also oils, watercolors and sketches. Feb. 20 through May 6 at the Walters Art Museum. thewalters.org

Chicago
CÉZANNE TO PICASSO
Cézanne to Picasso: Ambroise Vollard, Patron of the Avant-Garde honors the influential art dealer who championed many of the foremost talents of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Among his achievements were organizing Picasso’s first exhibition in France, Matisse’s first solo show and a landmark retrospective credited with cementing Cézanne’s place in the modern pantheon. These artists and many others—Bonnard, Degas, Gauguin and Van Gogh, to name but a few—are represented by more than 100 paintings along with ceramics, sculpture, prints and livres d’artistes. Feb. 17 through May 12 at The Art Institute of Chicago. artic.edu

Baltimore
PISSARRO
Camille Pissarro played a key role in the Impressionist movement, both as an artist and as a beloved mentor to his younger colleagues, notably Cézanne and Gauguin. Pissarro: Creating the Impressionist Landscape explores the artist’s evolution through 45 works, including three of the five paintings he presented in the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874. The “humble and colossal Pissarro,” as Cézanne once referred to him, was the only artist to participate in all eight Impressionist shows, which were often characterized by infighting. Feb. 11 through May 13 at the Baltimore Museum of Art. artbma.org

Cleveland
MONET IN NORMANDY
Claude Monet spent much of his artistic life in Normandy, capturing on canvas the area’s towns, countryside and seasonal rhythms. Through some 60 paintings, Monet in Normandy explores the artist’s relationship with this region. The show pays particular attention to Monet’s depictions of bodies of water—the commercial harbor at Le Havre, scenery along the Seine, the crashing waves of Etretat—and his paintings of monuments such as the Rouen Cathedral. Feb. 18 through May 20 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. clevelandart.org

New Orleans
FEMME, FEMME, FEMME
Femme, femme, femme: Paintings of Women in French Society from Daumier to Picasso from the Museums of France assembles more than 80 works in a panorama of women’s changing roles in society over the course of the 19th-century. The exhibition is organized thematically, with scenes of domestic life giving way to images of women at work and play. March 3 through April 2 at the New Orleans Museum of Art. noma.org

New York
STAIRCASE MODELS
Some two dozen staircase models, most from 19th-century France, are on view in Made to Scale: Staircase Masterpieces for the Permanent Collection. Including works by apprentice carpenters and master craftsmen alike, the exhibit offers insight into the French guild system, or compagnonnage; through these models, the artisans demonstrated their knowledge of structural design, architectural details and cabinetmaking. Through June 3, at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum. cooperhewitt.org

Cambridge, MA
FRENCH MICROSCOPES
Singular Beauty: Simple Microscopes from the Giordano Collection at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Museum explores the aesthetics of simple microscopes. There are 127 instruments featured in the exhibition, including a French Huygens-type model made in 1680 by Pouilly à Paris. Through June 30. mit.edu

Atlanta
LOUVRE STATESIDE
Louvre Atlanta, which runs through fall 2009, has transformed a wing of the High Museum of Art into an outpost of the venerable French institution. The overarching theme of the project is the history of the Louvre, with year one focusing on the royal collections. “Kings as Collectors” (through Sept. 2) presents paintings, sculptures and antiquities acquired during the reigns of Louis XIV and XVI. Two companion exhibits, “The King’s Drawings” (through Jan. 28) and “The Decorative Art of the Kings” (March 3 through Sept. 2) round out the offerings. louvreatlanta.org