

THE TRIUMPH OF COLOR: IMPORTANT WORKS FROM A PRIVATE EUROPEAN COLLECTION
The present work, which the artist executed circa 1890 at the height of his involvement with the Pont-Aven group, depicts the tranquil beauty that fascinated these artists during the early part of the 1890s. Under Gauguin’s influence Sérusier began to experiment with a new style of painting, using flat colors and outlining simple forms chosen for both emotional and descriptive reasons. Maurice Denis noted how Gauguin initially explained to Sérusier his ideas about painting: "What color do you see that tree? Is it green? Then use green, the finest green in your palette. And that shadow? It’s blue, if anything? Don’t be afraid to paint it as blue as you possibly can" (Maurice Denis, “L’Influence de Paul Gauguin,” in L’Occidente, October 1903, n.p.).