A Person Holding an Umbrella and a Seated Man with a Hat and a Glass [verso] 1884 - 1888

This sheet of paper bears a drawing by Paul Gauguin, who rendered its figures using graphite. In essence, this is just a sketch, and it shows. Gauguin is thinking through the composition, considering his subjects in isolation and in relation to each other. It’s interesting to consider graphite itself as a medium. Mined from the earth, refined into a useable form and encased in wood, pencils are of course products of industrial labor and distribution. Yet they are also among the most intimate of drawing tools, capable of capturing the subtlest nuances of light and shadow. Here, Gauguin is less concerned with subtleties than with the quick notation of forms – a person with an umbrella, and a seated man, perhaps in a café. There’s a casualness to the work, an emphasis on directness and observation. It is in that spirit of unpretentious exploration, that it can be appreciated, even in its incomplete state.