Man Playing Piano; Two Sheep [verso]

Gauguin employed a combination of brown ink and graphite, allowing for both bold line work and subtle tonal variation. The strokes are swift and sketchy, characteristic of a preparatory drawing rather than a finished composition. The use of wove paper provides a smooth surface that supports the rapid, gestural marks typical of the artist’s exploratory studies during this period.

The drawing dates to the mid-1880s, a time when Gauguin was still developing his post‑Impressionist language before his later Symbolist phase. It remains a testament to his early experimental practice. The work’s provenance traces through private collections before entering a museum holding of 19th‑century French drawings, where it is displayed as part of Gauguin’s formative oeuvre.