Chicken Coop 1875

Paul Gauguin painted this oil on canvas work, titled 'Chicken Coop', at an unknown date. Gauguin's humble scene might seem at odds with his later exotic paintings of Tahitian life, but both reflect a desire to escape the industrialized world. Gauguin returned to France from his first stay in Tahiti in 1893. He found the Parisian art world obsessed with modern urban life. But here, there's an almost defiant embrace of the mundane. The subdued palette and loose brushwork suggests a deliberate rejection of academic polish, aligning it with the Impressionists' focus on everyday subjects. Yet, the composition, with its strong horizontal lines and simplified forms, hints at Gauguin's move towards Symbolism and Primitivism. These movements rejected realism and celebrated the spiritual dimensions of life, in contrast to the modern focus on the material. To understand Gauguin's artistic choices, scholars often turn to his letters and journals. These writings offer insights into his evolving aesthetic philosophy and his critiques of European society. Ultimately, this painting, like all art, exists within the social and institutional currents of its time.