Artwork
Tahitian Carrying Bananas (Le porteur de fei)
Tahitian Carrying Bananas (Le porteur de fei) is an ink print by the Impressionist artist Paul Gauguin. It dates from 1895 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1895, this woodcut by Paul Gauguin depicts a figure bearing a pole laden with banana bunches across his shoulder, accompanied by a standing cow and a sparse landscape of trees, rocks and distant figures. The composition is rendered entirely in stark black lines, giving the work a graphic, sketch‑like quality typical of the medium.
Subject & Meaning
The scene presents a quotidian laborer from Tahiti, emphasizing the artist’s fascination with everyday activities in a culture he considered unmediated by Western influence. The inclusion of the animal and the minimal background suggests a harmonious relationship between human work and the natural environment.
Technique & Style
Executed as a woodcut, the image was carved into a wood block, inked, and pressed onto paper, resulting in bold, uniform contours and a textured surface. Gauguin’s use of simplified forms and strong outlines aligns with his broader interest in reducing detail to convey essential visual information.
History & Provenance
Gauguin produced the print during his second stay in Tahiti, a period marked by intensive exploration of local subjects. Though his reputation grew posthumously, this work remained part of his limited print output, circulating among collectors of his graphic works.
Context
The print reflects the late 19th‑century European artistic trend of seeking inspiration from non‑Western cultures, a hallmark of both Post‑Impressionist and Symbolist movements. Gauguin’s Tahitian period provided a source of motifs that contrasted with contemporary academic art.
Artist & collection
Artist
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (; French: ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramist, and writer, whose work has been primarily associated with the Post-Impressionist and Symbolist movements.
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