Wladyslawa Jaworska

Stunningly illustrated, this is a very good account of a (virtual) moment in time and crossroads in the history of post-impressionism. Gauguin was perhaps most famous for ending his days in Tahiti having supposedly 'gone native'. He was in fact a hugely social (and abrasive) character who craved attention (and adulation) from his fellow artists in France. He was very much in his element in Pont Aven (in Brittany, France) in the 1890's where he, Bernard, Laval, Serusier and Denis (and many others) had gone, looking to be inspired by what they saw as a the primitive and exotic Breton culture. Gauguin's genius and impossible personality comes through clearly, but I like this book most of all for the balance it gives to the other - more human - talents of his colleagues. One is left to wonder about the energy that comes from the artists working together, and where Meijer de Haan's astonishing 'Motherhood' came from and why it, and he, isn't much better known. It is also the story of how Gauguin's genius for creation and inspiring others was accompanied by a talent for destruction and bitter rivalry. This is a very worthy book for anyone serious about Gauguin or Post-Impressionism, and the only place I have ever seen a reproduction of de Haan's portrait of Marie Henry and her (their) child. The reproduction, although well done, sadly doesn't do full justice to the original. Highly recommended.… (mehr)