La Barrière
Paul Gauguin
PAUL GAUGUIN, 1889. OIL ON CANVAS.
At the end of the century, a small group of artists attempted aesthetic alchemy. Known as the Synthetists, being part of the Synthetism movement, they wanted to combine the external appearance of nature, the internal feelings of the artist, and the purity of aesthetic colour and form into single works that spoke to the totality of human experience across cerebral and physical plains. Gauguin was the leader of this movement, distinctly different from the Impressionists whom he has been latterly associated with, and he understood the nature of painting in more rational, empirical way. For Gaugin, and all the Synthetists, it was essential to remember that paintings are simply flat surfaces covered in arranged color, and the goal of a painting was the remind the viewer of this, alongside more emotional responses. So Gaugin’s work is read first in response, the initial feeling that the painting provokes leads you into truthfulness, and a deep appreciation for the simple act of arranging colors.