Description
The Siesta is a painting by Paul Gauguin dating to about 1892–94. Tahitian women rest in the shade of a wooden porch, their grouped figures offering a quiet refuge from the afternoon sun. The sunlit landscape beyond the posts contrasts with the sheltered foreground, giving the scene its unhurried rhythm.
Broad areas of color and clear outlines simplify the figures, while more varied brushwork animates the porch floor and distant landscape. Gauguin developed The Siesta over an extended period: the foreground skirt was originally red, a dog once occupied the basket’s position, and the woman at the left was moved. These revisions reveal the deliberate construction beneath the painting’s appearance of ease. The final arrangement balances individual postures with the calm presence of a shared resting place.
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