Paul Gauguin
French·1848–1903
Post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) abandoned civilization for the South Pacific, seeking what he called "primitive" purity and spiritual intensity. His striking images of Polynesian women, painted in bold flat colors with symbolic meaning, influenced everything from Fauvism to Abstract Expressionism. Gauguin pioneered Synthetism, using areas of pure color for expressive purposes rather than naturalistic representation. His masterpiece Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? encapsulates his philosophical and artistic vision.
Gauguin worked as a Parisian stockbroker before abandoning his family to pursue art. He studied under Pissarro and exhibited with the Impressionists, but broke from them in Brittany where he developed his distinctive style. His nine-week stay with Van Gogh in Arles (1888) ended dramatically. Gauguin first traveled to Tahiti in 1891, disappointed to find French colonialism had transformed his imagined paradise. He returned in 1895, remaining in the Pacific until his death. His work was unappreciated until after death; dealer Ambroise Vollard promoted him posthumously. The Musee d'Orsay, Museum of Modern Art, and Hermitage hold major collections.
Primary Genres
Gallery Locations1 work with exact room numbers
Paintings by Paul Gauguin
28 paintings catalogued with museum locations
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The Yellow Christ
Paul Gauguin, 1889
Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo
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When Will You Marry?
Paul Gauguin, 1892
Kunstmuseum Basel, Basel
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Arearea (Joyousness)
Paul Gauguin, 1892
Musée d'Orsay, Paris
W
Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?
Paul Gauguin, 1897
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston
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The Seine opposite the wharf de passy
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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The Seine at the Pont d'Iena
Paul Gauguin
Musée d'Orsay, Paris
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Daisies and peonies in blue vase
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Vision After the Sermon
Paul Gauguin, 1888
National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh
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Two Tahitian Women
Paul Gauguin, 1899
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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Tahitian Women on the Beach
Paul Gauguin, 1891
Musée d'Orsay, Paris
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Spirit of the Dead Watching
Paul Gauguin, 1892
Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo
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Working the land
Paul Gauguin
Fitzwilliam Museum (University of Cambridge), Cambridge, Cambridge
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Tree in the farm yard
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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The Seine in Paris
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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The Forest Path
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Still life with oysters
Paul Gauguin
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA, Richmond
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Port de Javel
Paul Gauguin
Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Rotterdam
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Port de Grenelle
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Pears and grapes
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Mette asleep on a sofa
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Man with a Toque
Paul Gauguin
Fogg Museum (Harvard Art Museums), Cambridge, MA, Cambridge
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In the forest Saint Cloud
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
I
In the forest Saint Cloud II
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Clearing
Paul Gauguin
Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Orléans, Orleans, Orléans
C
China Asters, Hat and Book
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
C
Chicken Coop
Paul Gauguin
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Madrid, Madrid
B
Bouquet of Peonies on a Musical Score
Paul Gauguin
Private Collection, Unknown
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Nevermore
Paul Gauguin, 1897
Courtauld Gallery, London
Sculptures by Paul Gauguin
2 sculptures catalogued with museum locations. Browse all sculptures
Museums with Paul Gauguin's Work
15 museums display Gauguin's works. Click any museum to see visiting info and the specific works they hold.
Art Institute of Chicago
Chicago, United States
2 works on display
Earthly Paradise
Vase in the Form of a Tropical Plant with Bird and Deity
+9
Private Collection
Unknown, Unknown
12 works on display
In the forest Saint Cloud
In the forest Saint Cloud II
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York, USA
1 work on display
Two Tahitian Women
Musée d'Orsay
Paris, France
3 works on display
Arearea (Joyousness)
The Seine at the Pont d'Iena
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Boston, USA
1 work on display
Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?Gallery 227
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Madrid
Madrid, Spain
1 work on display
Chicken Coop
Kunstmuseum Basel
Basel, Switzerland
1 work on display
When Will You Marry?
Courtauld Gallery
London, Unknown
1 work on display
Nevermore
Fitzwilliam Museum (University of Cambridge), Cambridge
Cambridge, UK
1 work on display
Working the land
Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam
Rotterdam, Netherlands
1 work on display
Port de Javel
Fogg Museum (Harvard Art Museums), Cambridge, MA
Cambridge, US
1 work on display
Man with a Toque
Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Orléans, Orleans
Orléans, France
1 work on display
Clearing
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Buffalo, United States
2 works on display
The Yellow Christ
Spirit of the Dead Watching
National Galleries of Scotland
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
1 work on display
Vision After the Sermon
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA
Richmond, United States
1 work on display
Still life with oysters
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About Paul Gauguin
Gauguin was a central figure in Post-Impressionism and Symbolism. At Pont-Aven in Brittany, he developed Synthetism with Émile Bernard, using flat areas of bold color separated by dark outlines. His primitivist style influenced Fauvism and Expressionism.
Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? is at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The Musée d'Orsay in Paris holds major works. The Art Institute of Chicago, Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam, and MoMA display significant paintings.
Disillusioned with European civilization and seeking "primitive" authenticity, he sailed to Tahiti in 1891 at age 43. He found the island already colonized and missionaries had suppressed indigenous culture. Still, he created tropical scenes combining real observation with invented mythology that defined his mature work.
Vincent van Gogh invited him to Arles in 1888 to establish an artists' colony. Their nine-week cohabitation ended disastrously after fierce arguments about art. The night Van Gogh cut off part of his ear, Gauguin fled. They never met again, though Van Gogh's brother Theo continued representing Gauguin.
He worked as a successful stockbroker in Paris, painting only as a hobby and collecting Impressionist works. The 1882 stock market crash ended his financial career. He abandoned his Danish wife and five children to pursue art full-time, a choice that haunted but never deterred him.
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