Where Do We Come From 139×374.6 cm 1897 Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA "Where Do We Come From" is a testament to Gauguin's artistic and life pinnacle, and a rare masterpiece in art history. In 1897, after the death of his beloved daughter, coupled with financial poverty and complex spiritual issues, Gauguin faced this situation contemplating the confusion and meaning of life, using this monumental work of life to elaborate on its philosophy of birth, aging, sickness, death, sexuality, and religion, undertaking a heavy responsibility as his artistic testament (he attempted suicide the year after completing this painting).

Gauguin came to the primitive world of Tahiti, thinking he had found paradise on earth, intending to live a life returning to simplicity and hoping to integrate into the primitive life situation of Tahiti. Thus, from his painting themes, one can understand his intent for localization, but this was still exotic. Primitive life is about living fully in the present moment, where spontaneous living becomes the essence of a free life. In contrast, civilized thinking and living patterns are not so. In this thought-provoking work, Gauguin deeply experienced and interpreted these two cultural aspects.

The painting can be read in two ways. Generally, it is read from right to left, depicting the states and journey of life: birth, adulthood, aging, to death, where the artist interprets in a highly narrative, literary manner. In a deeper reading (background): in the upper right corner, a huge, tangled tree of knowledge (a story from the Bible) symbolizes the source of all human cognition, pain, guilt, and sin. Next, of course, is the story of Adam and Eve being tempted by the snake to eat the forbidden fruit (clearly located in the very center of the painting). In the background (within a black cavity), Adam and Eve are sadly expelled from paradise by the deity because they ate the forbidden fruit (the fruit of knowledge). On the left, the bewildered figures in nature contrast, through Gauguin, the civilized and primitive worlds, suggesting that a simple, free life in pristine nature would be paradise on earth.

It particularly questions European modernism's intent to conquer the world. In modernism, humans become the core of world creation (conquering nature), religion declines, and with Nietzsche's declaration of the "death of God," people become more isolated and helpless. Finally, when facing personal loneliness, pain, poverty, sickness, aging, and the anxiety and unsolvable nature of death, this transcends philosophy because living life cannot be interpreted by language. Through the most perfect imagery, symbolic colors, and an incredible organization of narrative, a theatrical space is constructed.