"Modern Gauguin studies—complex interpretations of the works based on the identification of the artist's sources in ancient sacred art from around the world—began in the early 1950s with the pioneering research of Bernard Dorival and Henri Dorra. The Symbolism of Paul Gauguin: Erotica, Exotica, and the Great Dilemmas of Humanity, Dorra's ultimate meditation on the art of Gauguin, constitutes a milestone in the history of Post-Impressionism."—Charles Stuckey is an independent scholar and consultant

The Symbolist art movement of the late 19th century forms an important bridge between Impressionism and Modernism. But because Symbolism emphasizes ideas over objects and events, it has suffered from conflicting definitions. In this book, Michelle Facos offers a comprehensive description of this challenging subject.

Presents the development and the aesthetic theories of the symbolist movement in art and literature

An original account of the tortuous and revealing relationship between two seminal figures of modern painting, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin.

Offers a new analysis of European symbolist art, situating the movement in its historical context and retracing its links with the evolution of ideas, particularly in literature.