M. LOULOU
by Paul Gauguin
1848-1903
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Paul Gauguin (goh GAN) was born in Paris, France. His father died while the family was moving to Peru. Paul with his mother and older sister Mari continued on to Peru and stayed with rich relatives there for six years.
When he was seventeen years old he became a sailor and traveled around the world. He spent some time in the Navy, then became a stockbroker's clerk in Paris. He became quite successful at the stock exchange and also began painting during his free time.
Paul Gauguin 1891
He married Mette Sophie Gad in 1873 and they had five children; Emile, Aline, Clovis, Jean Rene, and Pola.
Ten years after their marriage he left his family. He had quit his job as a stockbroker to spend full time painting. His income from his paintings was not enough to take care of his wife and children. What a shame! Today a painting by Gauguin may sell for as much as $39 million. Because he wanted to devote full time to his art career, he sent his family to live with his wife's parents in Copenhagen. Gauguin abandoned them and went back to Paris.Van Gogh's brother Theo, who was Gauguin's art dealer, suggested Gauguin visit his brother Vincent Van Gogh. Gauguin and Van Gogh did not get along at all, and the visit ended after Van Gogh cut off his own ear.
In 1891 he decided to escape civilization and sailed to the South Seas. He spent the rest of his life on Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands. Many of the paintings he produced in his later life reflect the tranquil scenes he viewed in this setting. During these years he also fathered three more children; two daughters and a son by Tahitian women.
One of his most famous works "Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?" was painted in 1897. Apparently Gauguin was troubled by trying to find the answers to these questions. He tried to commit suicide shortly after he finished the large painting.
In 1903 due to a problem with the church and the government he was sentenced to three months in prison, and he owed a fine. At that time he was being supported by an art dealer. He died before he could start the prison sentence. His body had been weakened by alcoholism and a dissipated life style. He was 55 years old.
The featured painting on this page, M. Loulou is the portrait of a young boy which Gauguin painted when he was in Brittany. In the background you see hydrangeas which bloomed there during the summer. The painting is a part of the Barnes Collection which was on exhibit at the Kimbell Art Museum in Ft. Worth, Texas in 1994.
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Gauguin - DK ArtBook
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A beautiful new series of art books to treasure.DK introduces a new series of lavishly illustrated paperback books on major artists and their works. Each volume tells the story of a single artist with a look at the artist's life and times, the historical and social context in which they worked, and an analysis of their masterpieces. A visual resource with more than 300 superb full-color illustrations, each book is written by a noted art historian. Fact-based text aimed at the general reader makes the series perfect for art-history students and art lovers of all ages. Each title surveys an individual artist's life and works Detailed analysis of the artist's masterpieces Includes comparative samples of the work of each artist's contemporaries.
Paul Gauguin Biography
from Olga's Place
Paul Gauguin
from Web Museum
"Notes Synthetiques", by Paul Gauguin
from the ArtChive
Paul Gauguin and the Russian Avantgarde
extensive list of Gauguin's works
Gauguin
at Wikipedia
Paul Gauguin
biography and image list
M. Loulou
online picture to color
Art Appreciation
art lesson K-6
Paul Gauguin
art lesson K-3
My Father Paul Gauguin
Online book by his son, Pola Gauguin
Paul Gauguin Biography and Prints
(Spanish version)
Famous Artists in this Series
Index to Famous Paintings
Art Appreciation
Lessons for Kids
