Paul Gauguin once brazenly claimed that he inspired Van Gogh to create the Sunflowers. This is patently untrue, since the still lifes were painted two months before Gauguins arrival at the Yellow House in Arles. The self-serving Gauguin wanted to claim credit for his colleagues signature works.
Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) Credit: National Gallery, London
Gauguins boast comes in a letter to his Paris-based friend Andr Fontainas, to whom he sent his 1902 manuscript Racontars de Rapin (Tales). This 28-page unpublished article was written in the Marquesan islands in French Polynesia. Yesterday (30 November) The Art Newspaper reported that the manuscript has just been acquired by Londons Courtauld Gallery.
Paul Gauguins Self-portrait (1901) (detail) Credit: Kunstmuseum Basel
In Tales, Gauguin lists 40 artists he admires. Van Gogh is included at the very end of the list, although nothing more is said about him, despite the fact that Gauguin lived and worked with him for nine weeks in the autumn of 1888. Their collaboration came to an abrupt end when Van Gogh mutilated his ear.
The last page of Gauguins Racontars de Rapin (Tales), which includes Van Goghs name at the end of a list of artists he admired Credit: Christies
In his letter to Fontainas, dated September 1902, Gauguin wrote that on his arrival in Arles, following my advice and my instructions, he [Van Gogh] worked quite differentlypainting yellow sunflowers on a yellow background. This was a complete distortion of the truth: Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) was actually hanging in Gauguins bedroom when he arrived.
Gauguin also claimed that it was he who encouraged Van Gogh to experiment, utilising the Dutchmans intelligence and fiery temperament. In conclusion, Gauguin wrote that when discussing Van Goghs noble nature I am forced to praise myself.
Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
The year before writing Tales, Gauguin painted a series of four still lifes with sunflowers. On three of these, the flowers are placed on chairs, which represent a nod to the Dutchmans painting Van Goghs Chair (December 1888), now at Londons National Gallery.
When Gauguin painted his 1901 still lifes with sunflowers, they might be seen as representing a homage to Van Gogh. But bearing in mind his claims to Fontainas, it seems equally likely that he was appropriating his colleagues famed motif. Gauguin may have wanted to add visual credence to his claim that he had provided Van Goghs inspiration.
Gauguins attempt was doomed to failure. Van Goghs series of Sunflowers is now universally recognised as his most popular paintingsand as all his very own work.
Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: Emil Bhrle Collection, long-term loan to the Kunsthaus Zrich
Other Van Gogh news:
Three prints of Van Goghs Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882), with the promised donation on the right Credit: Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation) and (right) Monique Hageman, on long-term loan to the Van Gogh Museum
Monique Hageman, a research assistant at the Van Gogh Museum since 1986, has given a rare lithograph of the artists Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882) to her institution. This represents an act of huge generosity. Hageman bought the print on 10 May at the Leiden-based Burgersdijk & Niermans auction house, paying 275,000. It will eventually be bequeathed to the museum.
The museum already owns the two other extant examples of Old Man drinking Coffee (each was finished by the artists hand and is slightly different). All three lithographs went on display yesterday at the Amsterdam museum, until early in the new year.
Continued here:
Gauguin's shocking claim: Van Gogh painted the Sunflowers ... - Art Newspaper
- 'Southern/Modern': Rediscovering the Radical Art Below the Mason-Dixon Line - The New York Times - December 3rd, 2023 [December 3rd, 2023]
- Meet Ferrisburgh, a Rescued Kestrel Who Started Painting After a ... - Smithsonian Magazine - December 3rd, 2023 [December 3rd, 2023]
- New to the NW, he's painting 100 Chestnut Hill scenes - Chestnut Hill Local - December 3rd, 2023 [December 3rd, 2023]
- 10 Best Face Painting Supplies for 2023 - The Jerusalem Post - December 3rd, 2023 [December 3rd, 2023]
- Gond painting by Jangan Singh Shyam on display - Daily Pioneer - December 3rd, 2023 [December 3rd, 2023]
- Painting the town Christmas - Moorpark Acorn - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Margate painting bike lanes green to prevent drivers from using them - Press of Atlantic City - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Review: Glory of the World: Color Field Painting (1950s to 1983) - Observer - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Conservator Restore This Renaissance Painting of a Medici - My Modern Met - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Jeff Tech Art Club students continue window painting tradition in ... - The Courier-Express - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- From Loewe to Swarovski, hand-painted murals get a luxury upgrade - Jing Daily - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Painting Perfection with Electric Paint Sprayers: A Comprehensive ... - Robotics and Automation News - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Joe Venditti's legacy as the Eagles' 'Official Painting Coach' lives on - PhiladelphiaEagles.com - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- The Huntington Acquires Historic Portrait by Renowned Spanish ... - The South Pasadenan - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- An Oklahoma love story: How an early Oklahoman's collection of ... - tulsapeople.com - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Pierre Bonnards paintings brim with vitality in Kimbell exhibition - The Dallas Morning News - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Adel Library to Host Teen Painting Contest and Hometown Holiday ... - Raccoon Valley Radio - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- PETA to Auction off the Iconic Anti Bullfighting Painting "The ... - PR Web - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- Isle of Wight students 'paint the plow' - Smithfield Times - Smithfield Times - December 2nd, 2023 [December 2nd, 2023]
- A Piet Mondrian painting has been hanging upside-down for decades, art historian says - CNN - November 1st, 2022 [November 1st, 2022]
- Eastern Flank Battlefield to Host "Painting the Parks" Art Show - Williamson Source - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- This Botticelli Painting, Once Owned by the Late Paul Allen, Could Fetch $40 Million at Auction - Robb Report - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- So the internet thinks there's an iPhone in this 19th century painting - Creative Bloq - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Long-Unseen Painting of Jamaican Man Is Identified as Rare Richmond Barth Work - ARTnews - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Halloween Window Painting contest will bring downtown windows to life - The Messenger - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- TCU Painting U.S. Cities With Leading Alums in Honor of 150th Birthday - Fort Worth Magazine - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Oakland painter Mary Lovelace ONeal honored at On the Edge gala at de Young Museum - SF Chronicle Datebook - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Celebrate Las Vegas Pride this weekend with lights, drinks, and body painting - KLAS - 8 News Now - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- How to Paint (with Pictures) - wikiHow - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- 50 Most Famous Paintings of All Time in the Art History (Ranked) - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Mural painting brings community together - University of Wisconsin-Madison - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Bold: Painting in the outdoors is nice work when you get it - Sudbury.com - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Beauty in the banal: Exhibit celebrates painter who wrote the book on Midwest landscapes and much more - WGLT - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- British Rapper Aitch Working to Fix Manchester Mural of Joy Divisions Ian Curtis That Was Painted Over for His Album Advertisement - Variety - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Was That Painting Stolen by Nazis? New York Museums Are Now Required to Tell You - Smithsonian Magazine - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Southside Park gets fresh coat of paint for National Painting Week - ABC10.com KXTV - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Meet the Farmington man who sells his paintings next to his car downtown - Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- LA Covers 1 Million Square Feet Of Roads Will Special Paint To Cool The City Down - CarScoops - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Painting in the Light - Santa Barbara News-Press - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- This 1645 Painting Is A Spitting Image Of Connor McDavid -- And It's Almost Scary - Washington Hockey Now - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- MADE: Paint additive becomes salty success - Greater Wilmington Business Journal - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Creatively Centered: Paint Grand Traverse wraps week with gala, block party - Traverse City Record Eagle - August 20th, 2022 [August 20th, 2022]
- Court sides with MFAH in dispute over painting once sold to Hitlers art collector - Houston Public Media - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Water Inspires And Imbues Milwaukee Native Khari Turners Joyful Paintings - Forbes - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Interview With Dave Cole of Coastal Painting Associates - Kingwood - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- 5 Times the Mona Lisa Was Vandalized or Stolen - ARTnews - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- How Alma Thomas Arrived at Her Seminal Style of Vibrant Abstract Painting - Artsy - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Mahmoud Said's painting 'Dervishes' holds its position as most expensive in Middle East - Egypt Today - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- 'I Painted The QueenShe Was Surprising In So Many Ways' - Newsweek - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Painting of Saco's Jubilee Park covered bridge Selected for exhibition - Press Herald - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- What Did Will Paint in 'Stranger Things'? - We Got This Covered - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Claude Rutault, French Artist Who Rewrote the Rules of Painting, Dies at 80 - ARTnews - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Powerful expression: Artist captures emotion of everyday life in paintings - Daily Journal - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Secrets of the Book Designer: On Typography, Painting, and Finding That Single Visual Moment - Literary Hub - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Do You Know The Story Of Lincoln's Famous Painted Rock? - q1065.fm - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- 2022 Sabbatical for Pastor Jeff Wood launches mural painting project at the Thrift Store next to First Presbyterian Church of Sebastian - Community... - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Activist artist Chris Wilson promotes awareness of solitary confinement with paintings - Gothamist - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- This painting reflects the nearly forgotten fishing village on Jones Island - 88Nine Radio Milwaukee - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- After Waiting Years for Cities to Act, People Are Painting Their Own Crosswalks - TheStranger.com - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Ilya Repin's chilling painting of Ivan the Terriblevandalised in 2018 by a drunk man with a metal polegoes back on show at Moscow's Tretyakov Gallery... - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Here Are the Last Paintings Vincent Van Gogh Completed During His Lifetime - My Modern Met - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Gallery in the Woods to show oil paintings of local musician Bobby DiTrani - Brattleboro Reformer - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Wish upon a painting: Norman artist explores desire and fear in her work - Norman Transcript - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Oil Painting - The Ultimate Guide For Beginners - Draw ... - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- 60+ Easy Acrylic Painting Ideas For Beginners (Who Want To ... - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- What Does This 17th-Century Painting Smell Like? - Smithsonian Magazine - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- A Once-in-a-Lifetime Donatello Show Argues That Sculpture, Not Painting, Was the Ultimate Renaissance Art Form - artnet News - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Utah reveals custom hand-painted helmets to honor fallen teammates Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe - CBS Sports - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- This Mozambique-Born Artist Is Changing What It Means to Be a Painter - The Cut - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Phoenixville painting company is about more than just paint - Daily Local News - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Painting the town purple: Stripe is back on Blake Street ahead of Rockies home opener - 9News.com KUSA - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Two of Japans rising stars interview each other about family, creative expression, and the difference between painting and acting - ARTnews - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Sothebys to Offer Rare Guston Ab-Ex Painting - Barron's - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- 5 fun wall painting ideas to refresh your home - NewsBytes - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- A Contested Landscape Painting in Berlin Is Deemed an Authentic Rembrandt - ARTnews - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Lesson of the Day: A Poem (and a Painting) About the Suffering That Hides in Plain Sight - The New York Times - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Daughter reunited with late father's painting from Chesterfield Inlet residential school - CBC.ca - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- 14-year-old art sensation Xeo Chu: I kind of keep it hidden from friends - The Guardian - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- The Chicago River Comes Alive in New Portrait Painted With Fishing Rod and Reel - WTTW News - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]
- Art group spreads autism awareness by painting - WDVM 25 - April 6th, 2022 [April 6th, 2022]