Manao tupapau (She Thinks of the Ghost or The Ghost Thinks of Her) 1894 - 1895

Editor: So this is Gauguin’s "Manao tupapau," made between 1894 and 1895. It's an ink and print on paper. The mood feels really unsettling, like a dream turned nightmare. What are your thoughts? Curator: Indeed. It's tempting to see it merely as an erotic work but consider instead the structural play. Observe how Gauguin manipulates spatial depth. The foreground figure dominates, yet the background, replete with ghostly apparitions, is brought forward through stark linear contrast. It's a deliberate flattening of the picture plane, nodding towards the Symbolist aesthetic. Do you see how the linear elements almost create an enclosed cage for the central figure? Editor: I do see it now. It almost feels claustrophobic. So the emphasis isn't necessarily on the *who* is in the image, but *how* Gauguin uses line and space to evoke unease? Curator: Precisely. Note also how the coloring, or lack thereof in dominant portions of the composition, reinforces the psychological tension. Consider how the lack of modeled form forces one to dwell on the materiality of the print itself – the very fibers of the paper are rendered integral to the reading of the work. Editor: That’s interesting. I wouldn’t have thought about the material itself having such an impact. It definitely makes me rethink how I approach art. Curator: That's precisely the aim: to question our presumptions about representation and explore the work as a constructed, material object first and foremost. Gauguin asks us to engage with form before narrative. Editor: Thanks. This was insightful. I’m going to look at art with a new lens now!