The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Nave Nave Fenua (Fragrant Isle)
1893–94
(French, 1848–1903)
Sheet: 38.5 x 22.8 cm (15 3/16 x 9 in.); Platemark: 35.7 x 20.5 cm (14 1/16 x 8 1/16 in.)
Catalogue raisonné: G.29; M/K/J 14
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Paul Gauguin printed the woodblocks for Noa Noa using a variety of inks and papers.

Description

In 1891 Paul Gauguin traveled to Tahiti, seeking a more authentic style of art making than the conservatism he rejected in Western culture. After returning to Paris in 1893, he began working on Noa Noa, an illustrated book that explained and illustrated his experiences abroad. Although the project was never completed, this print is one of its illustrations. Gauguin depicted a lush landscape by chiseling roughly into a woodblock, a technique meant to suggest relief sculpture he viewed in Tahiti.
  • ?-1933
    Print Club of Cleveland, Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    1933-
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Broude, Norma. Gauguin's Challenge: New Perspectives After Postmodernism. New York : Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2018. Reproduced and mentioned: pp. 167-169, fig. 6.5
  • A Lasting Impression: Gifts of the Print Club of Cleveland. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 5-September 22, 2019).
    Paul Gauguin: Paris, 1889. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 4, 2009-January 18, 2010).
    Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Seoul Art Center, South Korea (December 22, 2006-March 28, 2007); Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, South Korea (April 7-May 20, 2007).
    40th Anniversary Exhibition of the Print Club of Cleveland. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 3, 1959-January 20, 1960).
    Recent Accessions of Prints, 1933-34. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 20-March 13, 1935).
  • {{cite web|title=Nave Nave Fenua (Fragrant Isle)|url=false|author=Paul Gauguin|year=1893–94|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1933.444