The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Volpini Suite: Laundresses (Les Laveuses)

1889

Paul Gauguin

(French, 1848–1903)
France, 19th century
zincograph
Sheet: 50 x 64.9 cm (19 11/16 x 25 9/16 in.); Image: 20.8 x 26 cm (8 3/16 x 10 1/4 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1954.55.6
Catalogue raisonné: G.6; M/K/J 10
Location: Not on view

Description

Gauguin discovered an exotic, primitive culture in Brittany, a rugged region on the Atlantic coast in northwestern France. He then sought to translate into expressive forms the picturesque costumes, customs, and special spirituality of the peasants. The unusual point of view, the stylization of the frothing water, and the cropped cow at the lower left all betray the influence of Japanese woodblock prints, which became popular in France from the early 1860s. The twelve lithographs in this set, printed from zinc plates rather than stones, were Gauguin's first attempts at printmaking. To heighten the decorative effect, the lithographs were printed onto large sheets of bright yellow paper.
  • Lemonedes, Heather, Paul Gauguin, Belinda Thomson, Agnieszka Juszczak, Chris Stolwijk, and Moyna Stanton. Paul Gauguin: the breakthrough into modernity. Ostfildern: Hatje Cantz, 2009. cat. no. 21
  • Gauguin’s World: Tōna Iho, Tōna Ao. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston, TX (November 3, 2024-February 16, 2025).
    Paul Gauguin: Paris, 1889. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 4, 2009-January 18, 2010); Van Gogh Museum, 1070 AJ Amsterdam, Netherlands (February 18-June 6, 2010).
    Inventive Impressions: 18th- and 19-Century French Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-October 28, 2001).
  • {{cite web|title=Volpini Suite: Laundresses (Les Laveuses)|url=false|author=Paul Gauguin|year=1889|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1954.55.6