Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?, Paul Gauguin, 1897

Paul Gauguin was a post – impressionist artist. Post – impressionism does not refer to a certain style of art. It is simply a time period, which stretches from Van Gogh to Paul Gauguin , and even to Seurat and Matisse. In general most artists after Manet are also considered post – impressionist artists. Paul Gauguin however did paint using a style known as Primitivism. Primitivism employs nonwestern motifs in western art. Paul Gauguin is a prime example of this style, in many of his paintings he depicts the sexual freedom that was not allowed in Europe. This freedom is pictured by the woman’s lack of clothing. This caused Gauguin to receive negative criticism on his paintings. Europeans were not open to this idea of sexual freedom, and they viewed it as primitive and uncivilized. Many countries that were colonized by Europeans were thought of as unsophisticated. However Gauguin was very interested in the simplicity of the Tahitians people’s life. In this particular painting Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? It is evident that the people in the painting are depicted as primitive because of their lack of clothing as well as the background. The background is made up of trees and other shrubbery. In the right hand corner there is a baby, and in the middle there is a middle aged man, and in the left hand corner, there is an old man. This is important because it shows the Tahitian people as inseparable with nature; they are one with nature throughout their life. Nature is associated with ruggedness (Jennings, 91-96).


The British were the first to sight and visit Tahiti. Samuel Wallis sighted Tahiti on June eighteenth 1767. The many explorers that followed him described Tahiti as an earthly paradise, because of the people’s carefree nature. However as Europeans began to settle in Tahiti, the Tahitian population declined rapidly. There were once an estimated 200,000 people, but by 1797 there were only 6,000 Tahitians left. This rapid decline in population was caused by diseases such as influenza, typhus, and smallpox, brought by the European visitors. Alcohol and Christianity both disrupted society. The colonization of Tahiti can be represented in this painting. The newborn in the right hand corner resembles the British coming to Tahiti. It represents a new beginning for the Tahitian people. The man at the center is middle aged and has his hands up as if asking for help. This can be related to the Tahitian people wanting the Europeans to leave their land. The person in the left hand corner who is dying, represents the decline in population of the Tahitians with the Europeans colonization (Wikipedia, “Tahiti").

"Paul Gauguin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Gaugin

Jennings, Guy. Impressionist Painters. Twickenham, Middlesex: Hamlyn, 1986. Print.