Sketches of Figures, Pandanus Leaf, and Vanilla Plant - Paul Gauguin

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Morton G. Neumann

European Art Modern Art Paintings Prints

"Sketches of Figures, Pandanus Leaf, and Vanilla Plant" by Paul Gauguin (1891/93) black fabricated chalk and watercolor on cream wove paper (removed from a sketchbook).

Commentary

"Sketches of Figures, Pandanus Leaf, and Vanilla Plant" by Paul Gauguin (1891/93) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. Its painted surface guides your eye through color, brushwork, and contrast rathe r than through narrative alone. Themes to notice include watercolor. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Paul Gauguin is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Paul Gauguin French, 1848-1903. The work is cataloged within a France cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as watercolor, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (black fabricated chalk and watercolor on cream wove paper (removed from a sketchbook)) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (31.3 × 20.1 cm (12 3/8 × 7 15/16 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include watercolor. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/113718

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data