How Houston became the only U.S. city to host Gauguin exhibit
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"Three Tahitians" by Paul Gauguin. Photo: Courtesy of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Houston will be the only U.S. city to see an exhibit featuring a catalog of Paul Gauguin's post-impressionist works.
State of the art: "Gauguin in the World," featuring over 150 of the French artist's works, debuted at Australia's National Gallery of Art, in Canberra, and heads straight to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
Why it matters: The exhibition showcases Gauguin's life and work from the 1870s to his final years, with half of the exhibit devoted to his time in Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands. It also features works by Polynesian artists, marking the first time his work is presented in this context, according to MFAH consulting curator Ann Dumas.
Flashback: Planning for the exhibit began four to five years ago. It was curated by Henri Loyrette, former director of the Louvre and Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
- MFAH director Gary Tinterow, who worked with Loyrette during his time at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, used that connection to bring the exhibit to Houston — similar to their work on "Degas: A New Vision" in 2017.
Between the lines: "I think what a lot of people in the public don't realize is how incredibly difficult it has become to borrow paintings by these big-name, you know, very sought-after artists that are popular with the public," Dumas tells Axios, adding that touring exhibits often borrow complete collections from museums at once.
- "This is an exhibition that's been created from scratch, and work has to be borrowed individually from the different lenders for this exhibition. … So each of those loans requires a great deal of sophisticated and subtle negotiation. It's a real achievement to be able to bring together this number of works."
How it works: Loyrette, Tinterow, Dumas and others traveled globally to secure loans for the collection. Through a network of alliances between major museums, they gathered paintings, sculptures, prints and writings from 65 public and private collections worldwide, including the Musée d'Orsay, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Musée de Tahiti et des Îles.
- During this time, Loyrette, along with other researchers, wrote an exhibition book.
- Dumas visited the exhibit in Canberra and is now adapting its layout for MFAH. While inspired by the original, she and her team have the creative freedom to tailor it to the Houston space, including painting and building walls.
- The exhibit will take three weeks to assemble.
Fun fact: Each lending museum sends a courier with the artwork who will come to Houston and oversee its installation, especially since many of Gauguin's pieces are delicate.
Context: Gauguin, often credited with being a precursor to modernism, is best known for his Tahitian paintings. However, his time in French Polynesia remains controversial for how he portrayed the locals through the lens of colonialism and for his actions, including having child brides as young as 13 and infecting them with syphilis.
- Australia's National Gallery of Art reportedly addresses Gauguin's controversial legacy through talks, public programs, a podcast series and films within the exhibit — though some reviews suggest the exhibit doesn't reckon with Gauguin's colonial legacy enough.
What they're saying: "Gauguin was controversial in his own time and remains so today. The scope of this exhibition and the thoughtful, wide-ranging perspectives on Gauguin's work offered by the catalogue's authors promise to illuminate the artist in all of his artistic complexity," Tinterow said in a statement.
What we're watching: How MFAH highlights the paintings while balancing the artist's contentious background.
What's next: "Gauguin in the World" will be on view from Nov. 3 to Feb. 16.