National Gallery of Canada opens first-ever exhibition devoted to portraits by Gauguin

From May 24 to September 8, 2019, the National Gallery of Canada presents Gauguin: Portraits, offering the opportunity to see the work of French artist Paul Gauguin (1848 – 1903) from a unique perspective, bringing new insights into his vision of portraiture. Gauguin’s work has been the subject of many exhibitions, but Gauguin: Portraits is the first exhibition dedicated to his portraiture. One of the most important and fascinating artists of the nineteenth century, Gauguin expanded the traditional practice of portraiture in groundbreaking ways and had a fundamental influence on the art of the 20th and the 21st centuries. The exhibition highlights the way in which the artist used self-portraits and portraits of others to construct his own narrative, express himself and his ideas about art, and to pursue his ambitions as a leader of the avant-garde in Paris. Gauguin challenged the traditional functions of portraiture, giving