Paul Gauguin Accomplishments

On June 7th, 1848, an artist was born. As a member of an interesting family, Paul Gauguin experienced a few interesting events at an early age. Originally, the family lived in France. The Gauguin's soon made a lifestyle change and moved from Paris to Peru. Unfortunately, Paul's father died on the trip. The family size changed from four to three, leaving three year old Paul, his sister, and his mother to take care of themselves. Soon enough, they moved in to live with his uncle. Little did Paul know, moving from France to Peru majorly affected his artistic career. In many of his paintings, the Peruvian lifestyle is visible. His techniques consisted of “thick impastos and bold, expressionistic brushstrokes” (mystudios.com). The colors he often chose were “...Prussian blue or earth red…” (mystudios.com). People were not too fond of Gauguin at first, mainly because his style was very different of the Impressionists style. He worked on sackcloth and had little paint on his paintings at times. These two qualities are representative of his

While he visited galleries frequently and purchased paintings often, he needed some help. Through networking, ¨Gauguin formed a friendship with artist Camille Pissarro, who introduced him to various other artists” (paul-gauguin.net). Along with forming new relationships, Paul showcased in impressionist exhibitions held in 1881 and 1882. After getting his name out in the showcases, Paul created some new paintings. Around 1888, ¨Gauguin created one of his most famous paintings, "Vision of the Sermon." The boldly colored work showed the Biblical tale of Jacob wrestling with the angel. The following year, Gauguin painted "The Yellow Christ," a striking portrayal of the crucifixion of Jesus” (Biography.com editors). Not only did :Visions of the Sermon” and “The Yellow Christ” become well know, but “Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?” did