In Search of Gauguin

In Search of Gauguin

by Liz Heron (Translator), Jean-LucCoatalem (Author)

Synopsis

A sepia picture of an Anglo-Polynesian woman bought at auction by the author leads him to set off following the traces left by Gauguin of his travels round the globe. Who was the woman in the painting and why did Gauguin paint the face of her son, Atiti, on the day of his death at Papeete? He decides to go to the South Seas in search of the woman and her story. And so starts the author's reconstruction of Gauguin's life, an artist who thought he could find himself by escaping from reality, a man who reinvented exoticism, and finally lost his mind. Accessible and compelling, IN SEARCH OF GAUGUIN is a spiritual, human and geographical quest which takes in Holland, Brittany, Provence, Denmark, Panama, Martinique and Tahiti. Coatalem travels in the company of dead painters, patrons, art dealers, and the women of the south seas. Who was the true Gauguin? A businessman chasing sales of his work? A father of five children left behind in Copenhagen. A mystic? A genius?

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 320
Publisher: W&N
Published: 11 Mar 2004

ISBN 10: 0297829688
ISBN 13: 9780297829683
Book Overview: Centenary of Gauguin's death in 2003 coincides with international exhibition tour which will be shown in London at the National Gallery. Extraordinary recreation of the life and loves of Gauguin, his relationship with Van Gogh, his secret mistresses, his art. A carefully-researched recreation of artistic life at the end of the nineteenth century. Wonderful imagery and description of places visited. Full support of the Institut Francais to promote at publication.

Media Reviews
Book of the Week (Travel Supplement): Some lasting memories of the man and the landscapes he has passed through. -- ANTHONY SATTIN SUNDAY TIMES Admirerers of Gauguin will find much of interest in Coatalem's book... it is written with unashamed reverence... My dream cannot easily be taken hold of, Gauguin once wrote. His latest biographer has made an admirable attempt at it. DAILY TELEGRAPH (Travel) meticulously researched and admirably translated THE HERALD Coatalem has a genuine enthusiasm for his subject. -- Martin Gayford DAILY TELEGRAPH (ARTS AND BOOKS)
Author Bio
After growing up in Polynesia andvarious places around the Indian ocean, Jean-Luc Coatalem, 41, became a travel writer and a journalist and continues to travel the world.