Interior of a Tahitian Hut, from the Suite of Late Wood-Block Prints

Interior of a Tahitian Hut, from the Suite of Late Wood-Block Prints by Paul Gauguin French, 1848-1903, is a significant example of the artist's late graphic output. This print, created between 1898 and 1899, showcases Gauguin’s continued fascination with Polynesian life and material culture. The medium employed is a wood-block print executed meticulously in black ink, applied to thin ivory Japanese paper, which was subsequently laid down on cream wove paper for structural support.

Unlike his earlier, sometimes rougher prints, the works in the Late Wood-Block Prints suite demonstrate Gauguin's sophisticated handling of the medium. The artist utilized the woodcut technique to achieve bold, simplified forms and stark contrasts, capturing the dim light and intimate atmosphere inside the traditional dwelling. Gauguin often used the textured grain of the wood block to evoke a sense of organic materiality and spiritual depth in his depictions of Tahitian interiors.

Gauguin spent the last decade of his life seeking an artistic and cultural purity far removed from his origins in France, using the remote Tahitian environment as both subject and inspiration. His intense exploration of printmaking, focusing particularly on the wood-block method, was crucial during this final period and established a vital legacy that influenced subsequent modernist artists. This powerful work, classified simply as a print, remains a key component of the artist’s visual documentation of his adopted home and is held within the esteemed permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.