Paul Gauguin and the Overseas Territories
The Overseas Territories are a central theme of the work of Paul Gauguin. The artist stayed in Martinique from June to November 1887, painting twelve canvases, and later went to Tahiti in June 1891. In his work there, he principally painted the environment and landscapes, but he also depicted the daily life and culture of the island. He stated that, "Everything in the landscape blinded me, dazzled me. Coming from Europe, I was constantly uncertain of a colour, I complicated matters too much: and yet it was so simple to put onto my canvas a red and a blue" (Noa Noa). Upon his return to France in 1893, he put the finishing touches to the notes he had taken on the island which would later be collected into two illustrated manuscripts, "Noa Noa" and "The Ancient Maori Cult". Gauguin also made wood engravings and monotypes inspired by his Tahitian paintings. He returned to Tahiti for a final visit in 1895 before settling in the Marquesas Islands six years later.
