This movie is lush with Gauguin's masterpieces, which are shown in context of his fascinating life story giving us background and insight into his inspired, colorful body of work.
Narrated by Waldemar Januszczak, (an English art critic, arts editor of The Guardian and The Sunday Times, and television documentary), the film immediately drew me in with rich drumming music as the host stood on a beach the artist spent time at and asked: "What's to like about this man, you might think? Well, first off, there's the art, which needs no defense. I reckon Gauguin painted some of the world's most alluring women, but what I really like about him is that he did it for really big and noble reasons and he put them into several of the world's most gorgeous pictures. There's always more to a Gauguin than meets the eye. This is the first film that follows in Gaugin's footsteps."
The film indeed follows Gauguin to each location he lived. He arrived in Peru as an 18 month-old with an older sister, Marie, and a newly widowed mother, Aline. There, he was raised in privilege in the home of relatives who held political power. Gauguin's childhood was both wonderful and traumatic. After his Peruvian relatives were ousted from power, his mother moved her family back to Paris.
After school and a seven year stint in the navy traveling the world, Paul Gauguin married Matte, a tough, hard-partying Danish woman, when he was a successful stockbroker. He maintained this position for eleven years. After the 1882 stock market crash, he lost his income and devoted himself full tilt to painting full-time.
Gauguin did not desert his wife and five children, as is common lore. Matte, who enjoyed the comfortable life as a partner to a well off businessman, left him in 1885. She had no idea art would possess him as it did; nor did he. He was a passionate painter, sculptor, and potter with a penchant for yellow walls and flamboyant dress. He became a leader in the Symbolist school and painted with a proclivity for Primitivism.
Gauguin was comrades with numerous brilliant painters, among them, Pissarro, Cezanne, and Van Gogh. His relationships with them are covered in the narrative that travels from Peru to Paris, Pont-Avon, Tahiti, French Polynesia, the Marquesas Islands, and more.
His life was filled with drama, intrigue, and tragedy including the death of his beloved favorite child, Aline, which led to a suicide attempt. He was a bold, adventurous spirit with a desire to be live freely away from the bog of modern day civilization. He built and designed for himself spectacular living spaces, hedonistically pursued underage Vahines (women who were his lovers and muses) on the islands, and had a regal rendezvous with debauchery.
I enjoyed the film immensely but needed breaks from it, so I watched the nearly two hour movie in blocks of thirty minutes at a time. It struck me as a comprehensive rendering of Gauguin's life. The host, Januszczak did such a thorough job, I'm interested in seeing more of his work now.
I recommend this as a must-see for lovers of Gauguin's artwork.
Narrated by Waldemar Januszczak, (an English art critic, arts editor of The Guardian and The Sunday Times, and television documentary), the film immediately drew me in with rich drumming music as the host stood on a beach the artist spent time at and asked: "What's to like about this man, you might think? Well, first off, there's the art, which needs no defense. I reckon Gauguin painted some of the world's most alluring women, but what I really like about him is that he did it for really big and noble reasons and he put them into several of the world's most gorgeous pictures. There's always more to a Gauguin than meets the eye. This is the first film that follows in Gaugin's footsteps."
The film indeed follows Gauguin to each location he lived. He arrived in Peru as an 18 month-old with an older sister, Marie, and a newly widowed mother, Aline. There, he was raised in privilege in the home of relatives who held political power. Gauguin's childhood was both wonderful and traumatic. After his Peruvian relatives were ousted from power, his mother moved her family back to Paris.
After school and a seven year stint in the navy traveling the world, Paul Gauguin married Matte, a tough, hard-partying Danish woman, when he was a successful stockbroker. He maintained this position for eleven years. After the 1882 stock market crash, he lost his income and devoted himself full tilt to painting full-time.
Gauguin did not desert his wife and five children, as is common lore. Matte, who enjoyed the comfortable life as a partner to a well off businessman, left him in 1885. She had no idea art would possess him as it did; nor did he. He was a passionate painter, sculptor, and potter with a penchant for yellow walls and flamboyant dress. He became a leader in the Symbolist school and painted with a proclivity for Primitivism.
Gauguin was comrades with numerous brilliant painters, among them, Pissarro, Cezanne, and Van Gogh. His relationships with them are covered in the narrative that travels from Peru to Paris, Pont-Avon, Tahiti, French Polynesia, the Marquesas Islands, and more.
His life was filled with drama, intrigue, and tragedy including the death of his beloved favorite child, Aline, which led to a suicide attempt. He was a bold, adventurous spirit with a desire to be live freely away from the bog of modern day civilization. He built and designed for himself spectacular living spaces, hedonistically pursued underage Vahines (women who were his lovers and muses) on the islands, and had a regal rendezvous with debauchery.
I enjoyed the film immensely but needed breaks from it, so I watched the nearly two hour movie in blocks of thirty minutes at a time. It struck me as a comprehensive rendering of Gauguin's life. The host, Januszczak did such a thorough job, I'm interested in seeing more of his work now.
I recommend this as a must-see for lovers of Gauguin's artwork.