Gauguin @ MUDEC Milan

Paul Gauguin, Arearea no varua ino (Words of the Devil or Reclining Tahitian Women), 1894, oil on canvas, 60 × 98 cm, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. Credits: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gauguin_Arearea_no_varua_ino.jpg

Here we come to the end of the first year for Diotima in the Gallery! What a perfect occasion to close with a post that in some ways brings me back to my origins…

I have been so lucky to get a week off from the Christmastime frenzy in London and I happily reached Milan, Italy, for a week of pleasures. One of these was certainly my visit to the MUDEC (Museo delle Culture, i.e. Museum of Cultures). In contrast with its old-fashioned name, MUDEC is set in a very contemporary space by architect David Chipperfield and hosts a plethora of events and exhibitions so that it has already become a centre of Milan’s cultural life. Considering that the opening was just in Summer 2015, I must say the amount of happenings that have already taken place at MUDEC is quite amazing.

I went there to visit the exhibition regarding Gauguin and I definitely recommend it. Entitled “Gauguin, Tales from Paradise”, it displays not only paintings but also some magnificent wood carvings as well as pottery and zincographs by the artist. Some paintings by Cézanne, Pisarro, Van Gogh are on display too in order to emphasize differences and similarities within the artists.

The aim of the curators was to tell a story of the different places visited by Paul Gauguin (1848-1903), an artist who always escaped defining tags. Through his work, the visitor can come into contact with many regions of the world, very distant and different from each other: In his restless artistic search, Gauguin explored in fact Brittany, Denmark, Paris and Arles, as well as Martinique, Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands. Gauguin was keen on drawing material form other cultures to use in his work, in an artistic synthesis that ended up being something very different from the Impressionist style to which he was associated at first.

The developement of the exhibition, divided in five sections, shows this metamorphosis of  Gauguin’s style neatly. It also underlines the importance of Gauguin as an indefinable figure, who always pushed the limits of art convention. He approached Primitivism in his own original way, creating works that leave behind the European, “civilised” artistic conventions and enclose the most disparate elements, from everyday life to dreams to local myths. In his practice, we can appreciate a fusion of real, symbolic and decorative, a fusion operated by the artist’s mind through abstraction. No wonder that his work deeply influenced Picasso and the Cubism movement, Matisse and the Fauves. I could actually stretch his influence to the Surrealists without doubt.

Paul Gauguin, Arii Matamoe (The Royal End), 1892, Oil on coarse fabric, 45,1 x 74,3 cm, The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Credits: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_Gauguin_(French_-_Arii_Matamoe_(The_Royal_End)_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

Most of the artworks displayed come from the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek of Copenhagen, being the first time they are shown all together outside their usual setting. The choice of lights and materials for display reflect the importance given to Gauguin’s relationship with Primitivism: low lights, ground red or night blue reed mats and wooden cases are disposed to create a labyrinth where, as you turn the next corner, you enter a new level of understanding of Gauguin’s revolutionary originality. I must say I found it a bit disorienting and at first didn’t follow the intended path, but on the other hand I’ve always had a very bad sense of direction…

The museum doesn’t allow to take pictures so I had to use the ones available from the Internet. The show includes some famous masterpieces, however the real revelation are the wood carvings, little jewels to enjoy maybe for the first time. Don’t miss this chance if you find yourself nearby!

Paul Gauguin, Pape moe (Mysterious water), 1894, Painted Oak, 81,5 x 62 x 5 cm, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. Credits: http://www.glyptoteket.com/press-release/the-glyptotek-recieves-a-donation-of-a-work-by-gauguin

Paul Gauguin, Hina and Fatu, c. 1892, Carved Tamanu Wood, Height: 32,71 cm, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto. Credits:http://arttattler.com/archivepaulgauguin.html

Gauguin, Tales from Paradise
Until February 21st 2016
MUDEC, via Tortona 56, Milano, Italy
Tickets: 12,00 € Full, 10,00 € Reduced

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Useful links:

MUDEC Exhibition page: http://www.mudec.it/eng/gauguin/
An article on MUDEC by Politecnico di Milano International Business School’s Blog: http://www.growingleader.com/mudec-the-cultural-exhibition-center-opens-in-milan/