
Tip: move over the painting to use the lens.
Tahitian Women on the Beach
Paul Gauguin · 1890
- Artist
- Paul Gauguin
- Date
- 1890
- Where to see it
- Musée d'Orsay
Musée d'Orsay · Public domain · image via Wikimedia Commons · see it at the museum ↗
Slow Look
- The whole picture Let your eyes wander. Where do they want to rest?
- The light Find the brightest spot. What is it showing you?
- The edges Look at what is half cut off at the borders.
- One small detail Choose one tiny thing and stay with it for a while.
- The whole picture again Step back. Has it changed for you?
About Paul Gauguin
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin was a French painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramist, and writer, whose work has been primarily associated with the Post-Impressionist and Symbolist movements. He was also an influential practitioner of wood engraving and woodcuts as art forms. While only moderately successful during his lifetime, Gauguin has since been recognized for his experimental use of color and Synthetist style that were distinct from Impressionism.
What do you see?
Stand in front of it for a moment. Then tell us what you noticed or felt - there are no wrong answers.
Be the first to share a thought.
More by Paul Gauguin

Arlésiennes (Mistral)Paul Gauguin, 1888

Merahi metua no Tehamana (Tehamana Has Many Parents or The Ancestors of Tehamana)Paul Gauguin, 1893

Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?Paul Gauguin, 1897

The Yellow ChristPaul Gauguin, 1889

When Will You Marry?Paul Gauguin, 1892

Mahana no atua (Day of the God)Paul Gauguin, 1894

No te aha oe riri (Why Are You Angry?)Paul Gauguin, 1896

Polynesian Woman with ChildrenPaul Gauguin, 1901