Manuscript Pages [recto]
1886
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1886
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Manuscript Pages [recto] is a 1886 ink by Paul Gauguin, a Impressionism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This image shows two pages of handwritten notes in brown ink. The writing is dense, filling the paper with tight, slanted lines. Some words are crossed out, and others are underlined, giving it a messy, worked-over look. The notes seem to be about music theory, mixing colors, and how to combine tones. Gauguin was experimenting with ideas beyond just painting—he was thinking about how art and science could connect. If you’re curious about how artists mixed colors like this, look up cross-hatching.