Floor plan

East wing: The Nineteenth CenturyPost-Impressionism

Post-Impressionism

The Large Tree, by Paul Gauguin, 1891
Painting of a basket of green and red-yellow apples spilling over into a white cloth placed on a wooden table, with a dark green bottle and a plate of pale biscuits behind.
A work made of oil on canvas.
Painting of a placid-looking, light-skinned woman in a maroon dress, seated in a chair with yellow upholstery, hands folded.
Nursemaids’ Promenade, Frieze of Carriages, by Pierre Bonnard, 1895
Still Life with Apples and a Pot of Primroses, by Paul Cézanne, ca. 1890
Painted in muted lime green, plum purple, buttercup yellow, slate and royal blue, the head and shoulders of a man with peach-colored skin sitting in front of a window looks at us in this stylized, vertical portrait. His body and face are angled to our right but he looks at us from the corners of his eyes, which are grass-green with touches of yellow. One cobalt-blue eyebrow is cocked, and shading in denim blue, butter yellow, and fern green create hollows under both eyes. His flat nose has a broad bridge, and his pale pink lips are closed, the far corner pulled slightly up. His mustache is painted with visible strokes of forest green and his ginger-orange beard is trimmed along his prominent, jutting chin. His short, dark hair is brushed back from his temples and is painted with strokes of pine green, navy blue, and coral orange. His shirt has a wide, golden yellow stripe along the collar above indigo blue, under a grayish-violet purple jacket. The wall over his shoulder, in the upper left corner, is painted vivid lime green with long, vertical brushstrokes. The view through the window beyond his other shoulder is of vegetation and mountains. The portrait is painted with visible brushstrokes throughout, and is especially loose in the background, hair, and jacket. An inscription in dark green script in the upper left reads, “a l'ami Carriere PGauguin.” A second inscription in the lower left is written with dark brown paint: “l'ami Laval PGo.”
The image shows two women walking arm in arm, both in traditional attire. One woman is facing away with a slight profile, while the other is seen from the side. Their faces are stylized and simplistic with covered hair. They wear long dresses with aprons and collars, and one has a striped apron. Haystacks and greenery surround them. Faint figures are in the background, as well as a spire-like structure. A dog is seen near the haystack, with simple lines suggesting a landscape.

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Artists who kept Impressionism's colour but pushed towards structure, symbol and feeling.

Section 1, north wall

  1. The Large Tree, by Paul Gauguin, 1891
    The Large TreePaul Gauguin, 1891Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Painting of a basket of green and red-yellow apples spilling over into a white cloth placed on a wooden table, with a dark green bottle and a plate of pale biscuits behind.
    The Basket of ApplesPaul Cézanne, c. 1893Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. A work made of oil on canvas.
    The Vase of TulipsPaul Cézanne, c. 1890Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  4. Painting of a placid-looking, light-skinned woman in a maroon dress, seated in a chair with yellow upholstery, hands folded.
    Madame Cezanne in a Yellow ChairPaul Cézanne, 1888–90Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 1, south wall

  1. Nursemaids’ Promenade, Frieze of Carriages, by Pierre Bonnard, 1895
    Nursemaids’ Promenade, Frieze of CarriagesPierre Bonnard, 1895Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Still Life with Apples and a Pot of Primroses, by Paul Cézanne, ca. 1890
    Still Life with Apples and a Pot of PrimrosesPaul Cézanne, ca. 1890Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Painted in muted lime green, plum purple, buttercup yellow, slate and royal blue, the head and shoulders of a man with peach-colored skin sitting in front of a window looks at us in this stylized, vertical portrait. His body and face are angled to our right but he looks at us from the corners of his eyes, which are grass-green with touches of yellow. One cobalt-blue eyebrow is cocked, and shading in denim blue, butter yellow, and fern green create hollows under both eyes. His flat nose has a broad bridge, and his pale pink lips are closed, the far corner pulled slightly up. His mustache is painted with visible strokes of forest green and his ginger-orange beard is trimmed along his prominent, jutting chin. His short, dark hair is brushed back from his temples and is painted with strokes of pine green, navy blue, and coral orange. His shirt has a wide, golden yellow stripe along the collar above indigo blue, under a grayish-violet purple jacket. The wall over his shoulder, in the upper left corner, is painted vivid lime green with long, vertical brushstrokes. The view through the window beyond his other shoulder is of vegetation and mountains. The portrait is painted with visible brushstrokes throughout, and is especially loose in the background, hair, and jacket. An inscription in dark green script in the upper left reads, “a l'ami Carriere PGauguin.” A second inscription in the lower left is written with dark brown paint: “l'ami Laval PGo.”
    Self-Portrait Dedicated to CarrièrePaul Gauguin, 1888 or 1889Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  4. The image shows two women walking arm in arm, both in traditional attire. One woman is facing away with a slight profile, while the other is seen from the side. Their faces are stylized and simplistic with covered hair. They wear long dresses with aprons and collars, and one has a striped apron. Haystacks and greenery surround them. Faint figures are in the background, as well as a spire-like structure. A dog is seen near the haystack, with simple lines suggesting a landscape.
    Pleasures of Brittany (Joies de Bretagne)Paul Gauguin, 1889Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 2, south wall

  1. Pastel drawing of two figures in a sailboat, bright multi-colored clouds.
    Flower CloudsOdilon Redon, c. 1903Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of graphite on cream laid paper (pieced).
    Bather With Outstretched Arms (recto); Study of a Tree (verso)Paul Cézanne, 1874/77Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Self-Portrait with a Straw Hat (obverse: The Potato Peeler), by Vincent van Gogh, 1887
    Self-Portrait with a Straw Hat (obverse: The Potato Peeler)Vincent van Gogh, 1887Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, north wall

  1. Large painting of people in a crowded park, brushstrokes are dots.
    A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884Georges Seurat, 1884–86, border added 1888–89Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Lush tall grasses with small white flowers foreground a grove of bushy trees of varying types and heights, their leaves ranging from deep green to golden. Beneath a dense and heavy yellow sky, a small blue triangle suggesting a mountain peak crests above the treeline at far left.
    The Poet's GardenVincent van Gogh, 1888Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 3, north wall

  1. Painting in short strokes of pale blue, green, white, yellow, and pink, of a fisherman in one of two small boats on a river, a tree-lined bank and a bridge in the background.
    Fishing in Spring, the Pont de Clichy (Asnières)Vincent van Gogh, 1887Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Still-Life with a Watermelon and Pomegranates, by Paul Cézanne, 1900–1906
    Still-Life with a Watermelon and PomegranatesPaul Cézanne, 1900–1906Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. View of a village surrounded by hills, fields, and trees, shown from a vantage point above the scene. Subtly rolling hills recede into a bluish gray-ish sky punctuated by white clouds. Thick brushstrokes built up atop each other are visible throughout.
    Auvers, Panoramic ViewPaul Cézanne, 1873–75Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago