44
●
PAUL GAUGUIN
Mahna no Varua Ino
.
Woodcut printed in ochre on cream wove China paper, 1893-94. 202x352 mm; 8x14
inches, full margins. Fourth state (of 4). A proof in this state, printed before the Pola
Gauguin edition of 100 published in 1921 (impressions of which were printed in black).
A superb, richly-inked, dark and evenly-printed impression of this very scarce proof.
This impression, unrecorded by Kornfeld, is likely unique. Kornfeld notes two impressions
of other
Noa Noa
subjects printed before 1904 byTony or Jacques Beltrand for Émile Druet
and neither of these is in ochre ink (Kornfeld 20 and 22). According to Kornfeld, Druet
acquired 8 of the
Noa Noa
wood blocks sometime around 1914-18 and had Beltrand print
impressions. In 1921, Druet sold the wood blocks to the artist’s son, Pola Gauguin, and he
produced the edition of 100 impressions of each.
The Pola Gauguin printings, as well as many of the Beltrand impressions, are evidenced by
the splits in the blocks (which are particularly noticeable in the 1921 impressions).The current
impression has no signs of splitting in the block and is likely an early impression from the
1890s or early 1900s.
An impression of
L’Univers est Crée
printed in ochre on China paper, and an impression
of
Nave Nave Fenua
, printed in ochre on Japan paper, both also from
Noa Noa
, were sold
at Sotheby’s, London (1998) and Drouot, Paris (1989) respectively. Kornfeld 19.
[20,000/30,000]
