Landscape near Pont-Aven

Gauguin first visited Pont-Aven, in Brittany, in the summer of 1886. His second visit was in February, 1888; he stayed there until that autumn, when he went to Arles at the invitation of van Gogh and spent some time painting there. This landscape looks from the woods known as the Bois d'Amour on the outskirts of Pont-Aven towards the farm on the other side of the Aven River. It was there, that summer, that a young artist, Paul Sérusier, painted a landscape under the instruction of Gauguin; later known as The Talisman, it became a milestone pointing to a new direction in painting. This painting shows traces of Impressionist brushwork in Gauguin's treatment of the river and the hill, but his interest in the decorative can be seen in the green meadow and the composition of the group of trees.