Manao Tuppau Analysis

Gauguin made his first visit to Tahiti (a French colony) in March 1891, and did not return to Paris until May 1893. It was a hugely productive period in Gauguin's career, saying himself that, “In the two years I have spent here, with only a few months lost, I have produced sixty-six more or less fine canvases and a number of ultra-primitive sculptures. That is enough for any one man." One of the works that came from this time Gauguin spent in Tahiti is called “Manao Tupapau” or “Spirit of the Dead Watching” (oil on canvas, 1892). Its mysteriousness and openness to interpretation has secured for it a position among Gauguin's key works, the importance of which has been declared by both critics and the artist himself. The painting depicts an adolescent …show more content…
– Vincent Van Gogh), uses colors to arouse feelings in his art; Gauguin himself exploits this emotional potential of color in “Manao Tupapau”, where he created a haunting, supernatural quality through his color choices. For example, the purples used for the wall give the painting an air of ominousness and gloom; this kind of ominous gloom seems to overtake the piece, since the background takes up almost half of the picture space. By using low value colors and making them encompass the majority of the canvas, Gauguin grants the piece a looming sense of terror. The colors used to paint the sheets that the young girl is laying on could also be colors that entice emotion. The sheets are a mélange of white and yellow, the latter being the primary color that could arouse something for the viewer, whether that is questions or emotions or both. The yellow on the, what one assumes used to be, white sheet raises questions like: is the sheet dirty? If so, how did that happen? Why is this girl laying on soiled sheets? Etc. These questions, even going unanswered, evoke spectators’ emotion and in turn make them think more deeply and profoundly about the