Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

A fresh canvas

Paul Gauguin was a successful stockbroker who made a dramatic career shift

ETHNIC TOUCH Tahitian Women On the Beach

Eugène-Henri-Paul Gauguin was born on June 7, 1848, in Paris. His father, Clovis Gauguin, was a journalist while his mother, Aline Marie Chazal, was the daughter of Flora Tristan, an important figure in modern feminism. When Louis Napoleon came to power in 1849, the family moved to Peru. Clovis died during the voyage. Paul, with his mother and sister, stayed in Lima. The family returned to France and stayed with an uncle Isidore in Orleans.

In 1865, Gauguin joined the Merchant Navy travelling between France and South America. He also made a journey around the world. After the Franco-Prussian war,he left the Navy, Gauguin worked as a broker's agent in Paris. His wealthy guardian, Gustave Arosa, had an extensive art collection featuring works by Delacroix, which fired Gauguin's interest in the arts. Arosa also introduced Gauguin to Camille Pissaro.

Gauguin was a successful stockbroker but when he saw the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, he was fascinated and wanted to become an artist. He spent about 17,000 francs on the works of Manet, Monet, Sisley, Pissarro and Renoir.

Gauguin made his debut at the Salon in 1876 with a landscape. He also exhibited with Impressionistsin 1879, 1880 and 1882. Later Pissaro introduced Gauguin to Cézanne. Gauguin married Mette Sophie, a Dane, who bore him five children.

In 1883, Gauguin quit the stock exchange and left his family with his in-laws in Copenhagen and returned to Paris. In October 1888, he finally acquiesced to the persistent suggestions of his art dealer, Theo Van Gogh, to meet his brother, Vincent. The meeting was rather traumatic, ending in the infamous "ear incident" where Van Gogh chased Gauguin through Paris streets with a razor to cut his ears and ended up cutting his own!

Gauguin organised an exhibition of his works in 1891 to generate funds for his trip to places where he could live on "ecstasy, calmness and art". At the exhibition, Monet admired Jacob Wrestling with the Angel and Degas contributed to a major chunk of the 1,00,000 francs generated by buying many paintings. Gauguin left for Tahiti in 1891. He left in 1893 and returned in 1895 to stay till his death of a heart attack on May 8, 1903. Considered one of the major Post-Impressionist artists, Gauguin was deeply influenced by folk art and worked with brilliant, pure, bright colours. His work is characterised by flatness of planes that he called synthetic symbolism.

Gauguin's work influenced modern art, particularly Symbolism, and Arthur Frank Mathews who started the California Decorative movement after meeting Gauguin in the late 1890s. Gauguin's life inspired the Somerset Maugham novel The Moon and Sixpence.

MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBER

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail