Spirit of the Dead Watching
1893–94
Medium
woodcut printed in color on wove paper
Dimensions
8 1/8 x 13 3/4 in. (20.6 x 34.9 cm) paper, trimmed to image
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1936
Accession Number
36.6.10
Tags
Art Historical Context
Paul Gauguin's *Spirit of the Dead Watching (1893–94) is a striking color woodcut on wove paper, measuring just 8 1/8 x 13 3/4 inches. Created during the artist's transformative time in Tahiti, this print captures his Post-Impressionist fascination with exotic cultures and spirituality. Gauguin, a pioneer in synthetic Primitivism, drew inspiration from Polynesian mythology, where the "tupapau"—spirits of the dead—haunt the living, evoking a haunting blend of fear and beauty. The medium itself is revolutionary: Gauguin hand-carved and printed these vibrant blocks, layering colors to mimic the ...
About the Artist
Paul Gauguin · 1848–1903
Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) was a French Post-Impressionist painter whose bold experiments with color, form, and subject matter made him one of the most influential figures in the transition from 19th-century art to modernism. His rejection of European civilization for the perceived authenticity of 'primitive' cultures established an archetype of artistic exile that continues to resonate. Gauguin's ...