Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?
Paul Gauguin is known for being one of the world's greatest painters, although he was not much appreciated at his time. His work seems to tell stories of his life. In his series of painting done in Tahiti, we can see the many wonders that Gauguin himself explored. Today Gauguin's painting run for millions. For example; Paul Gauguin's Maternite (II) done in 1899 was sold for $39.2 million. That wasn't the case back when Gauguin first started his new career. In this essay I will determine to explore Gauguin's life and his well-known painting Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?
Paul Gauguin was born in Paris, France on June 7, 1848. Gauguin's family was middle class people with a liberal outlook on life. His father, Clovis, was a journalist, and his own family were gardeners, and had been for generations. His mother's family was Peruvian aristocrats, and some of them were famous.
Gauguin's early life was interesting as the family did not remain in Paris, but instead spent four years in Peru. Gauguin, who eventually became an artist, did not give any early indications that he was leaning in that direction. He worked in the French merchant marine for a time, and then became a stockbroker in Paris. His career was a successful one, and he married and had five children. Everything in his life appeared to be settling down comfortably, but before long, all of that would change.
In 1874, Gauguin met the artist Camille Pissarro and then later saw the first exhibition of impressionist art. From that time on, Gauguin became intrigued with art and in fact became a collector of art and then an amateur painter. However, before long, painting becam...
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...e is also a Gauguin trademark; as seen with the figure in the middle on Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? His thick, flat, brush strokes help create a design element breaking apart from Impressionist artists. Gauguin is a masterful painter. Gauguin's painting sell for millions today. Another example of his masterpiece being appreciated in today's society is when a portrait of his muse, Amedeo Modigliani and his lover, Jeanne Hebuterne sold for $31.4 millions dollars. If only he knew his paintings where selling for millions of dollars.
Pollock, Lindsay. "Fall Auctions Soar to $678 Million." ARTNews Jan. 2005: Vol. 104. Number 1.
"Gauguin, Paul." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 1994 ed
Harrison, Charles., Wood, Paul., and Gaiger, Jason. Art in Theory 18-15-1900: An Anthology of Changing Ideas. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell. 1998.
During Vincent Van Gogh’s childhood years, and even before he was born, impressionism was the most common form of art. Impressionism was a very limiting type of art, with certain colors and scenes one must paint with. A few artists had grown tired of impressionism, however, and wanted to create their own genre of art. These artists, including Paul Gaugin, Vincent Van Gogh, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Paul Cezanne, hoped to better express themselves by painting ...
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I will discuss Post Impressionism by using three works, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, Still Life with Basket of A...
Monet's works during his last years at Giverney are mysteriously beautiful and can be interpreted many ways, holding a different meaning for each individual. I see Monet's work as objects of wonder and enchantment, which boggle the mind, stimulate thought and provide visual pleasure for the viewer. There is no denying that Monet is probably one of the best-loved artist in the world. People who have never even seen any of his actual paintings recognize his work. Monet's work commands immense prices and a seemingly endless stream of studies and monographs every year and will continue to do so the centuries to come.
Rewald, John. Post-Impressionism: From Van Gogh to Gauguin. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1978.
Gauguin could not have known that he would have a lasting legacy because it is very rare for artists to become popular due to the large number of people trying to become artists. It was a very unlikely outcome for Gauguin because he was from a poor background and there were many artists at that time trying to become
Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner’s Art through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Vol 2.13th ed. Boston: Wadsworth/ Cengage Learning, 2010.
Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. New York: Prentice Hall Inc. and Harry N. Abrams Inc. 1995.
Barnett, Peter. “The French Revolution in Art”. ArtId, January 7th 2009. Web. 5th May 2013.
His dad taught him everything he knew about art. Pablo’s father was also an artist, and as Pablo became older, he continued to see an outstanding amount of talent in Pablo. Picasso dads guided and helped set the foundation for his natural born abilities, which made Pablo a successful artist. Pablo Picasso was born with a natural ability to paint. He was born on October 25, 1881 in the town of Malaga, Spain.
Stone, W. F. (1897). Questions on the philosophy of art;. London: Printed by William Clowes and Sons.
Paul Gauguin was a leading French post impressionist artist whose focus was his imagination. He worked in a studio and experimented with color. His wo...
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