With the exhibition “Gauguin – unexpected”, the Kunstforum am Freyung is dedicating it to one of the best companions of modernism until 19 January. The focus is on the development of the artist from late impressionist to symbolist and synthesizer, as well as his visual language, which was influential until the 20th century.
Display notice
“Gauguin – unexpected” at the Bank Austria Kunstforum, Freyung 8, 1010, every day 10 am to 7 pm, Friday until 9 pm, tickets usually 14 euros with discounts for seniors and people under 27.
The quality and richness of the pictures as well as the graphics and sculptures in the show curated by Evelyn Bensch was unexpected. “The return of Paul Gauguin to Austria promises to be a magnet for art fans far beyond the country’s borders, 60 years after the last great recovery,” said Ingried Brugger, director of the Bank Austria Kunstforum, confidently. .
From banker to impressionist
In total, the exhibition, in collaboration with the Albertina, presents more than 80 loans from major international museums and important private collections. The works show his artistic development and lifestyle through pioneering movements to Brittany and the island colonies of Martinique and French Polynesia.
Gauguin, born in Paris in 1848, only began his artistic career among the Impressionists at the age of 34, when he lost his job as a banker. Until the 1880s, he mainly painted nature changes and idyllic family pictures like genre. Very soon his interest went beyond painting and he began to work on sculpture made of ceramics and wood, as well as various graphic techniques.
A series of photos with 6 pictures
National Art Gallery
“Haysheaves in Brittany”, 1890, oil on canvas
Albertina, Wien/Ana Paula Franco
“The crickets and the ants – memories of Martinique”, 1889, zincography on yellow vellum paper
Indianapolis Museum of Art, Bequest of Kurt F. Pantzer, Sr.
“Landscape with Poplars”, 1875, oil on canvas
Oil Haupt
“Vessel with British Girl, Sheep and Geese,” 1886–87, earthenware
Sheffield Museum Trust/Photo: Rheinisches Bildarchiv, Marc Weber
“Interior with Aline”, 1881, oil on canvas
Noah’s Arch Museum – Art & Culture Collection, Hohenems/Photo: Clemens Rhomberg
“Meadow on Martinique”, 1887
Painting from my own memory
At the end of the 1880s, Gauguin’s attitude towards painting itself changed: instead of painting from nature, he now created his paintings from memory and his own imagination. He spent more time with symbolic literary figures such as Stephane Mallarme, who celebrated the painted equivalent of their poetry in his works and recognized him as the founder of Symbolist and Synthetic Painting. When he moved to Tahiti for the first time, the world of colors became more exciting and he created new worlds of images.
The artist was an ambiguous personality throughout his life. He pursued his career with purpose and self-centeredness, accepting setbacks and breaks with his family and colleagues. He always enjoyed the comforts of life in the colony in French Polynesia, on the remote Marquesas island where he died in 1903.
The art scene is more important today
According to the press release, the exhibition is also aware of the problematic aspects of Gauguin’s working life. With today’s understanding of alienation, colonialism and cultural appropriation, Gauguin’s figure must be seen in a completely different context.
In keeping with his time, the artist undoubtedly had a “Eurocentric and paternalistic view of other cultures; “He idealized and stereotyped them,” the broadcast says. However, the exhibition refrains from judging Gauguin as a person and instead focuses on his artistic development.