BRIDFAS
British Decorative and Fine Arts Society
of Brussels
BRIDFAS Events 2010-2011
London Study Day 2010, Saturday, November 20
Paul Gaugin
Gauguin
Mark your calendars for what is going to be an exceptional BRIDFAS study day at the Tate Modern in London. It is entitled “Gauguin”, and it is the first major exhibition on the artist to be held in Great Britain in the last 50 years. Paintings and drawings are being borrowed from every corner of the world.
Paul Gauguin (1848 – 1903) was a painter, sculptor, printmaker and ceramicist whose constant pictorial and technical experimentation led him to abandon the reigning style of Impressionism and to pave the way for Primitivism, a movement which would explode in the 20th century.
Although Gauguin was born in Paris, he spent several years of his childhood in Peru where he was exposed to native society and its colourful, naïve artwork. When he was seven his family returned to France, and until 1885 he lived a sedate life of school, work, marriage and fatherhood. All the while, though, he continued to paint and to meet affirmed artists. Slowly he, too, began to be recognised in the gallery world until one day he abandoned his wife and children and began to paint full time.
Initially an impressionist painter, Gauguin was frustrated with the limitations of the style and he frequently succumbed to bouts of depression. He longed to go beyond the French borders, to discover new worlds and to paint in a different way. In 1887 he began to restlessly travel the globe, and his style gradually became more literal as well as more naïve: figurative and characterised by black outlines and pure colours.
Two Tahitian Women
Unfortunately, this new primitive style did not give him the gallery recognition he desired, and in 1897 he moved to Tahiti. Here penniless and dedicated to art, he painted the masterpieces for which he is so well loved. Tahitian girls offer flowers or extend themselves nude across a bed, their contact with nature and people being innocent and honest. Nevertheless, Gauguin did not find peace in Tahiti, either, and he eventually died there at the age of 54 weakened by syphilis and a lifetime of alcoholism.
What eluded Gauguin during his life came to fruition upon his death. He was recognised as a ground-breaking painter whose impact on the 20th century was at the root of modern art.
Study day participants will be greeted at the Tate Modern with morning tea and cake followed by a lecture on Gauguin, private lunch and timed entry into the exhibition. Afternoon tea and cake will be served as well, and there will be time to explore the rest of the gallery at leisure. The study day is open to members and non-members. A detailed schedule will be available during the month of August.