Te burao (The Hibiscus Tree)

1892

Completed early in Paul Gauguin’s first Tahitian sojourn, this landscape shows the artist grappling with representing an unfamiliar environment. Rather than documenting botanical species scientifically, Gauguin focused on the artistic potential of their variegated colors, textures, and forms. The human figure in the distance and the dog roaming through fallen branches activate the landscape and establish a sense of scale.

Public domain · CC0
Free to download and reuse. Image courtesy of Art Institute of Chicago.

Artist

Paul Gauguin (French, 1848–1903)

Date

1892

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

68 × 90.7 cm (26 3/4 × 35 11/16 in.); Framed: 86.4 × 109.3 × 8.9 cm (34 × 43 × 3 1/2 in.)

Origin

France

Collection

Art Institute of Chicago

Credit

Joseph Winterbotham Collection