L’univers est créé (The Universe Is Being Created), from the Noa Noa Suite

Paul Gauguin’s "L’univers est créé" (The Universe Is Being Created) is a captivating wood-block print from his iconic Noa Noa Suite, created in 1893. This piece exemplifies Gauguin's innovative approach to printmaking, moving beyond simple reproduction to create a unique, painterly effect through selective wiping of inks and the hand-application of a vibrant palette of watercolors. Gauguin, known for his Post-Impressionist and Symbolist styles, sought refuge from Western civilization in Tahiti, and this work reflects his deep engagement with Polynesian mythology and spiritual themes. The print's rich, earthy tones and bold forms are characteristic of his Synthetist style, which emphasized the symbolic rather than the purely representational. This woodcut, with its complex layering of black and brown inks, demonstrates his mastery of the medium, a skill he cultivated as an influential practitioner of wood engraving and woodcuts as art forms. It invites viewers to contemplate the origins of the cosmos through a lens that blends ancient myths with Gauguin's distinctive artistic vision, a theme he explored in other significant works like "Te Po" and "The Universe Is Created" from the same period.