Seated Tahitian Woman (recto), Sketches of Roosters and Chickens (verso)

Seated Tahitian Woman (recto), Sketches of Roosters and Chickens (verso) by Paul Gauguin French, 1848-1903, is a significant double-sided drawing created between 1891 and 1893. This period marks the beginning of the artist's defining sojourn in Tahiti, reflecting his pursuit of an art form rooted in non-Western traditions, away from the influence of Impressionism in France. The primary image, the Seated Tahitian Woman, is masterfully rendered using black fabricated chalk, selectively blended, and accentuated with touches of brush and gray gouache. The technique also incorporates traces of black fabricated chalk offset, suggesting Gauguin's use of transfer or preparatory studies to define the figure's quiet, robust volume.

The work, executed on ivory wove paper, was originally part of a sketchbook, providing intimate documentation of Gauguin's creative methods. In direct contrast to the carefully modeled woman on the recto, the verso features rapid graphite studies detailing Sketches of Roosters and Chickens. These spontaneous animal depictions demonstrate the artist's keen observational skills and the incorporation of Polynesian domestic life into his visual vocabulary. Both the formal study and the incidental sketches offer valuable insights into the artist’s process of generating imagery during his time abroad. This essential drawing by Gauguin is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, a key piece illustrating the transformative final phase of the artist’s career.