Mother and Child (recto)

Mother and Child (recto) is an early, intimate drawing by Paul Gauguin, executed between 1870 and 1879. This period marks the artist’s initial engagement with art while still working as a stockbroker in France. Classified formally as a Drawing, the piece employs black chalk on paper, a direct and versatile medium favored for preliminary studies and capturing immediate impressions of form.

The subject matter focuses on the universal motif of a mother tending to her infant, a theme that highlights Gauguin’s capacity for traditional figural composition before his move toward Post-Impressionism. The use of black chalk emphasizes contour, volume, and the subtle interplay of light and shadow, demonstrating the artist’s technical proficiency in draftsmanship acquired during his self-directed studies of Old Masters and contemporary academic practice. The focus is purely on the interaction between the two figures, rendered with sparse but decisive lines.

This work serves as a significant record of Gauguin’s developing style during his Parisian years. While lacking the dramatic color and symbolic narrative of his later pieces, this drawing provides essential context for understanding the foundational skills upon which his revolutionary style was built. This rare glimpse into his formative period is preserved in the extensive collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. For those seeking broader engagement with the master’s early oeuvre, authorized fine art prints derived from drawings like Mother and Child (recto) are often made available through collections entering the public domain.