Still Life with Peonies

Still Life with Peonies by Paul Gauguin, an oil on canvas created in 1884, serves as a crucial document of the artist's formative years before his decisive departure toward Primitivism. Painted while Gauguin was living near Rouen, the work retains the high-keyed palette and visible brushwork characteristic of French Impressionism, demonstrating the influence of contemporaries like Pissarro and Cézanne on his early repertoire. This piece was completed shortly before the artist fully abandoned his career as a stockbroker to dedicate himself entirely to painting.

The controlled execution of the painting, dated 1884, places it squarely within the broad artistic developments taking place during the late 19th-century period of 1876 to 1900. While the subject matter is traditional-a large, exuberant bouquet of peonies spilling out of a vessel and set upon a draped surface-Gauguin’s color choices hint at the vibrancy and flatness he would later embrace. He treats the petals with a variety of pinks and deep reds, anchoring the composition with a muted background that lends the flowers a three-dimensional depth typical of academic training, contrasting sharply with the non-naturalistic color use of his subsequent Synthetist style.

As a significant example of the artist's transitional phase, this work captures Gauguin exploring light and texture before his breakthrough to Post-Impressionism. The careful rendering of the delicate flora and the heavy, saturated application of paint highlight his technical mastery. This beautiful French still life is now part of the permanent collection at the National Gallery of Art. High-quality prints of this painting are frequently requested, benefiting from the institution's commitment to accessibility, where such masterworks sometimes enter the public domain for broader educational access.