![Seated Tahitian Woman (related to the painting Te faaturuma [Reverie])](https://image.artoryworks.com/iiif/2ad75b1c-e2e2-e2ae-57a0-d23cec4d1397.webp)
Provenance
Alphonse Kann, Paris [Flint 1931]. Joseph Stransky, New York by May 1931 [Flint 1931]. Sold by Wildenstein and Company, New York, to the Art Institute, 1944.
Accession Number
188750
Medium
Charcoal on cream wove paper (discolored to tan)
Dimensions
55.5 × 48 cm (21 7/8 × 18 15/16 in.)
Classification
drawings (visual works)
Credit Line
Margaret Day Blake Collection
Background & Context
Background Story
Paul Gauguin's Seated Tahitian Woman (1891/93) is a charcoal drawing on cream wove paper related to his painting Te faaturuma (Reverie). This study shows a Tahitian woman seated, the figure rendered with the simplified forms characteristic of Gauguin's style. The charcoal technique is soft and atmospheric, capturing the contemplative mood of the subject. This drawing is a preparatory study for the finished painting.
Cultural Impact
Gauguin's preparatory drawings for his major Tahitian paintings show the development of his compositions.
Why It Matters
This charcoal study of a seated Tahitian woman is a preparatory work for Gauguin's painting Te faaturuma.
