''Fields by the Sea'' (in French: ''Les Champs au bord de la mer'') is an 1889 oil on canvas painting by

Paul Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...

. It is also called ''Landscape from Bretagne''. The painting is exhibited at the

Nationalmuseum Nationalmuseum (or National Museum of Fine Arts) is the national gallery of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm. The museum's operations stretches far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, the nationalmuseum manag ...

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

. In the 1880s, Paul Gauguin occasionally went to

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

, where he was taken by the landscape and local traditions. This painting shows an actual part of the coast, in a subjective interpretation where the decorative effects of colour fields and contours are the key element. The orange sections have shadows in a contrasting blue. This new style was called Synthetism. In autumn 1892, the artist

Richard Bergh Sven Richard Bergh (28 December 1858 – 29 January 1919) was a Swedish painter, art critic and museum manager. Despite many years in France, he remained unattracted to Impressionism, preferring instead the Naturalism of painters such as Jule ...

bought the painting from Gauguin's Danish wife. This painting inspired many Swedish artists.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fields by the Sea Paintings by Paul Gauguin 1889 paintings Landscape paintings Paintings in the collection of the Nationalmuseum Stockholm