This handsomely produced volume, featuring 128 full-page color illustrations, showcases a wide-ranging selection of the most outstanding works from Canada's largest art museum. Each of the pieces chosen for inclusion is introduced by a curatorial specialist, who sets it in its historical context and comments on its meaning and its place in the artist's oeuvre. Pride of place is given to the Gallery's unparalleled holdings in Canadian art, but European art--paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings--is equally well represented. Masterworks from the Inuit art collection are also included, as well as examples from the Gallery's small but distinguished Asian collection. In recent decades, photographs have become an increasingly important part of the Gallery's collecting mandate, both through its own collection and that of its affiliate the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, and this emphasis too is amply reflected here.
The first in-depth investigation of Gauguin's portraits, revealing how the artist expanded the possibilities of the genre in new and exciting ways Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) broke with accepted conventions and challenged audiences to expand their understanding of visual expression. Nowhere is this phenomenon more evident than in his portraits, a genre he remained engaged with throughout all phases of his career. Bringing together more than 60 of Gauguin's portraits in a wide variety of media that includes painting, works on paper, and sculpture, this handsomely illustrated volume is the first focused investigation of the multifaceted ways the artist approached the subject. Essays by a group of international experts consider how the artist's conception of portraiture evolved as he moved between Brittany and Polynesia. They also examine how Gauguin infused his work with symbolic meaning by taking on different roles like the Christ figure and the savage in his self-portraits and by placing his models in suggestive settings with alluring attributes. This welcome addition to the scholarship on one of the 19th century's most innovative and controversial artists reveals fascinating insights into the crucial role that portraiture played in Gauguin's overall artistic practice.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.