French artist Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (1848–1903) reproached the Impressionists for searching 'around the eye and not at the mysterious centre of thought.' In his own work, therefore, Gauguin was pursuing a 'mysterious centre' – but what does this enigmatic phrase mean?

In Paul Gauguin, Dario Gamboni illuminates this quest, and takes a fresh look at Gauguin's output in all media: from ceramics, sculptures, prints, drawings and paintings, to his large body of correspondence and writings. This innovative, in-depth investigation provides a new understanding of Gauguin's art and thought, revealing a coherence and continuity previously overlooked.

'Gauguin's crucible is his brain', wrote the late nineteenth-century art critic Jean Dolent. Gamboni shows that, indeed, the interaction between perception, cognition and imagination was at the core of the artist's work. Emulating the artist's curiosity for literature, psychology, philosophy, theology, anthropology, the natural sciences and art, and including close readings of artworks both famous and lesser-known, this richly illustrated, original study gives new insight into a well known yet little understood artist. The book will appeal to students and scholars of Gauguin, as well as those new to his work wishing to learn more about this pivotal post-Impressionist figure.