The Pont-Aven School

The Goose

Paul GAUGUIN (1848-1903)

1889

Enlarge picture jpg 545Ko (See the caption hereafter) (modal window)
Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) L’Oie, 1889 - Huile sur plâtre, 53 x 72 cm - © Musée des beaux-arts de Quimper

Tempera on plaster

99-4-1

Acquired at an auction sale in Paris in 1999 with the aid of the Heritage Fund of the Ministry of Culture and Communication, the Region of Brittany and the Association of Friends of the Museum

H. 61 cm - L. 79 - P. 7 cm

This goose decorated the lintel of the interior entrance door of «  ». The theme was an allusion to the charms of the beautiful hostess courted by the artist.

 

In 1889, Paul Gauguin was tired of the atmosphere in Pont-Aven, which was crowded with artists and tourists.  He settled in the small isolated hamlet of Le Pouldu at the mouth of the Laïta with Meijer de Haan, a Dutch painter who had asked him for guidance.   They were joined by Charles Filiger and set themselves up at the «  de la plage » run by Marie Henry.  They transformed the dining room into a studio and decorated the walls, the ceiling and the doors.  When Marie Henry rented out the inn in 1893, she took everything she could, such as the doors and the decorations from some of the walls.  However, the décor on the principal retaining wall remained, but was rapidly covered by wallpaper.  It was not until 1924 that l’Oie (the Goose) was discovered under seven layers of paper.  The ceiling décor was destroyed.  The other works are dispersed among museums and private collections throughout the world. 

The Pont-Aven School

The Goose

Paul GAUGUIN (1848-1903)

1889

Enlarge picture jpg 545Ko (See the caption hereafter) (modal window)
Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) L’Oie, 1889 - Huile sur plâtre, 53 x 72 cm - © Musée des beaux-arts de Quimper

Tempera on plaster

99-4-1

Acquired at an auction sale in Paris in 1999 with the aid of the Heritage Fund of the Ministry of Culture and Communication, the Region of Brittany and the Association of Friends of the Museum

H. 61 cm - L. 79 - P. 7 cm

This goose decorated the lintel of the interior entrance door of «  ». The theme was an allusion to the charms of the beautiful hostess courted by the artist.

 

In 1889, Paul Gauguin was tired of the atmosphere in Pont-Aven, which was crowded with artists and tourists.  He settled in the small isolated hamlet of Le Pouldu at the mouth of the Laïta with Meijer de Haan, a Dutch painter who had asked him for guidance.   They were joined by Charles Filiger and set themselves up at the «  de la plage » run by Marie Henry.  They transformed the dining room into a studio and decorated the walls, the ceiling and the doors.  When Marie Henry rented out the inn in 1893, she took everything she could, such as the doors and the decorations from some of the walls.  However, the décor on the principal retaining wall remained, but was rapidly covered by wallpaper.  It was not until 1924 that l’Oie (the Goose) was discovered under seven layers of paper.  The ceiling décor was destroyed.  The other works are dispersed among museums and private collections throughout the world. 

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