Te atua (The God) from the Noa Noa Suite - Paul Gauguin

Clarence Buckingham Collection

"Te atua (The God) from the Noa Noa Suite" by Paul Gauguin (1893/94) Wood-block print, printed twice in yellow ocher and black inks, over yellow ink tone block, and transferred golden-yellow, green, red-orange, and red oil-based media, some containing beeswax and conifer resin (probably pine resin), on cream Japanese paper.

Commentary

"Te atua (The God) from the Noa Noa Suite" by Paul Gauguin (1893/94) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. Its painted surface guides your eye through color, brushwork, and contrast rather than through narrative alone. Themes to n otice include woodcut. 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 woodcut, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Wood-block print, printed twice in yellow ocher and black inks, over yellow ink tone block, and transferred golden-yellow, green, red-orange, and red oil-based media, some containing beeswax and conifer resin (probably pine resin), on cream Japanese paper) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (Image/sheet: 20.3 × 35.1 cm (8 × 13 7/8 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include woodcut. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/63056

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