Earthly Paradise

1888·Wood with paint, glass and metal·101 × 120 × 60.5 cm (39 3/4 × 47 1/4 × 23 13/16 in.)

<p>Combining painting, sculpture, and carpentry, this unique object was created collaboratively by Paul Gauguin and his younger contemporary <a href="https://www.artic.edu/artists/33617">Émile Bernard</a>. Their artistic experiments, often undertaken in the spirit of friendly competition, challenged hierarchical distinctions between fine art, grounded in aesthetics, and decorative art, associated with functionality. Bernard carved the left panel and possibly the bottom panel. Both artists incorporated animals, trees, and people from village life in Brittany, France, motifs they also used in their paintings. The figures on the right panel were inspired by Gauguin’s trip the previous year to the Caribbean island of Martinique. This visit informed his later decision to leave France, which ultimately led him to Tahiti.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1888
Medium: Wood with paint, glass and metal
Dimensions: 101 × 120 × 60.5 cm (39 3/4 × 47 1/4 × 23 13/16 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Paul Gauguin

Artist

Paul Gauguin

Painting

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.

Paris, France

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