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Te raau rahi (The Big Tree)

A work made of oil on jute canvas.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of oil on jute canvas.

Date:

1891

Artist:

Paul Gauguin
French, 1848-1903

About this artwork

“Everything in the landscape blinded and dazzled me,” wrote Paul Gauguin of his first months in Tahiti. Here, he showcased the island’s variety of bountiful fruit trees, including a thick-trunked, violet hotu at left; spindly mango and coconut trees; and three short banana plants with lush, splayed leaves. In the foreground, a man uses a stick to crack a coconut and a family rests in the grass with a sleeping dog beside them. The painting’s coarsely woven canvas, made of a fibrous plant matter (jute), is visible through the paint layer. Cheaper and more readily available than traditional canvas, this support material lends the work a rugged, organic texture.

Status

On View, Gallery 247

Department

Painting and Sculpture of Europe

Artist

Paul Gauguin

Title

Te raau rahi (The Big Tree)

Place

France (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1891

Medium

Oil on jute canvas

Dimensions

72.5 × 91.5 cm (28 9/16 × 36 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Kate L. Brewster

Reference Number

1949.513

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/111062/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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