In Rome, the exotic charm of Polynesia through the works of the celebrated French artist
The Historical Museum of Infantry in Rome is hosting, until January 25, 2026, the exhibition Gauguin. The Diary of Noa Noa and Other Adventures. The show celebrates French artist Paul Gauguin (Paris 1848 – Atuona 1903) and reveals his passion for Polynesian culture through a selection of works created during the final years of his life, spent in French Polynesia. Drawings, paintings, lithographs, woodcuts, sculptures, travel notes and diary pages recount the emotions and impressions Gauguin experienced in those distant islands, immersed in the Pacific Ocean and far removed from Western civilization.
“I was now completely immersed in this life. I was no longer a civilized man, but a savage. I no longer needed to think, but to live. And nature, so beautiful, so wild, so free, had become a lover, a mother, a sister to me.”
Paul Gauguin
The Exhibition
Gauguin. The Diary of Noa Noa and Other Adventures offers a unique opportunity to discover the creative universe of one of the leading Post-Impressionist artists and the beauty of Polynesian landscapes and culture. The exhibition takes visitors on an exotic journey through ancestral stories, mystical traditions, and the hidden treasures of an ancient civilization and a primordial world, free from artifice, where nature reveals its full power.
Curated by Vincenzo Sanfo, the exhibition features 165 works from Italian, French, and Belgian private collections, as well as several French and Italian museum collections.
“This exhibition on Paul Gauguin is special, focusing on the three books he wrote during his Tahitian journey, along with the works he included in these volumes that describe his life, his emotions, personal events, passions, fears, loves, and of course, the adventures he lived in Tahiti.”
Vincenzo Sanfo, curator
Works on Display
On display are over 100 woodcuts, drawings, and lithographs by Gauguin, along with two works attributed to him: the oil on canvas Femme de Tahiti (1891) and the watercolor Paysage Tahitien. The highlight of the exhibition is the set of 23 woodcuts from the Diary of Noa Noa (1893–94), written during Gauguin’s first stay in French Polynesia and enriched with his illustrations using the ancient technique of wood engraving, printed by his friend Daniel de Monfreid.
Also included are facsimile lithographic prints from Gauguin’s last book, Avant et Après, completed two months before his death (1903) and published posthumously. This manifesto-like diary contains reflections on art, friendships, and other themes dear to the artist.
The exhibition further presents the 16 color lithographs of the series Ancien Culte Mahorie (1892), and two sculptures dated 1893: Vase aux dieux tahitiens (with a terracotta copy) and Idole à la coquille, exhibited in Rome in a bronze version with a mother-of-pearl shell. Also on display are the rare Mask of a Tahitian Woman “Tehura”, in patinated bronze from the Musée Despiau-Wlérick in France, and a sketchbook of 38 drawings featuring portraits, studies of the human body, and animals. Among these are preparatory notes for a portrait of Van Gogh – his friend and rival – depicting him painting the famous Sunflowers, as well as two caricatures recounting the infamous incident of Van Gogh’s severed ear after their furious quarrel.
“This exhibition path is not only about Gauguin’s artistic narrative, but above all about a journey through life itself, towards a different world that embodies the joy of living, the purity, and the freedom of life in those places many of us have lost.”
Vincenzo Sanfo, curator
Section on Gauguin’s Life
The exhibition also explores some of the most intimate and lesser-known aspects of Gauguin’s life, with 40 works by 12 artists who shared bonds of friendship or collaboration with him. On display are a selection of Vincent van Gogh’s color lithographs, including Le fauteuil de Gauguin (1853–1890) and The Yellow House (1853–1890), as well as works by Jean-François Millet, Adolphe Beaufrère, and Louis Anquetin, along with Maurice Denis, Émile Bernard, and Paul Sérusier of the Nabis group in Pont-Aven, Brittany – another key place in Gauguin’s life.
Section on French Polynesia
Part of the exhibition is also the photographic showcase The Islands of Tahiti, The Primordial Soul, created by Tahiti Tourisme in collaboration with Leica Camera Italia. A video and a selection of images by photographers and filmmakers Luigi Chiurchi and Pietro Ienca invite visitors to discover the natural and cultural beauty of the Society Islands and the Marquesas Islands, which in 2024 were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.
Till 25 January 2026
Piazza di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, 9
Hours: Monday to Friday 9:30 AM – 7:30 PM | Saturday, Sunday and holidays until 8:30 PM
Tickets: Full price €15
