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 ...
In the Enseigne, art is also shown to serve a function that it has always fulfilled in every society founded on class differences. As a luxury commodity it is an index of social status. It marks the distinction between those who have the leisure and wealth to know about art and posses it, and those who do not. In Gersaint’s signboard, art is presented in a context where its social function is openly and self-consciously declared. In summary, Watteau reveals art to be a product of society, nevertheless he refashions past artistic traditions. Other than other contemporary painters however, his relationship to the past is not presented as a revolt, but rather like the appreciative, attentive commentary of a conversational partner.
Jean-Michel Basquiat was born on December 22, 1960 in Brooklyn, New York to parents Gérard Basquiat and Matilde Andradas. Little did they know at the time that Jean-Michel Basquiat would soon go down as one of the most important contemporary painters continuing to leave a legacy for decades to come after his passing. Basquiat would live a difficult life and experience many hardships until he later dies of a heroin overdose, but what he experiences during his lifetime is what shaped the way Basquiat expressed himself through his art. Basquiat’s exceedingly personal and relatable art is what guided him to being such an influential artist. “His work is likely to remain for a long time as the modern picture of
Pablo Picasso is one of the most famous and well-documented artists of the twentieth century. Picasso, unlike most painters, is even more special because he did not confine himself to canvas, but also produced sculpture, poetry, and ceramics in profusion. Although much is known about this genius, there is still a lust after more knowledge concerning Picasso, his life and the creative forces that motivated him. This information can be obtained only through a careful study of the events that played out during his lifetime and the ways in which they manifested themselves in his creations (Penrose).
Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. New York: Prentice Hall Inc. and Harry N. Abrams Inc. 1995.
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.
Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner’s Art through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Vol 2.13th ed. Boston: Wadsworth/ Cengage Learning, 2010.
Barnett, Peter. “The French Revolution in Art”. ArtId, January 7th 2009. Web. 5th May 2013.
Stone, W. F. (1897). Questions on the philosophy of art;. London: Printed by William Clowes and Sons.
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.
During the 19th century, a great number of revolutionary changes altered forever the face of art and those that produced it. Compared to earlier artistic periods, the art produced in the 19th century was a mixture of restlessness, obsession with progress and novelty, and a ceaseless questioning, testing and challenging of all authority. Old certainties about art gave way to new ones and all traditional values, systems and institutions were subjected to relentless critical analysis. At the same time, discovery and invention proceeded at an astonishing rate and made the once-impossible both possible and actual. But most importantly, old ideas rapidly became obsolete which created an entirely new artistic world highlighted by such extraordinary talents as Vincent Van Gogh, Eugene Delacroix, Paul Gauguin, Paul Cezanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Claude Monet. American painting and sculpture came around the age of 19th century. Art originated in Paris and other different European cities. However, it became more popular in United States around 19th century.
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
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...