Born in Peru, he emigrated to France, and secured a job as a stockbroker in Paris. He did quite well as a broker. By the age of 31 he was pulling down 30,000 Francs a year, the equivalent of about $150,000 today. At the age of 35 he gave it all up to be a painter. This new job was not a success, so in 1891 he left his wife and five children and headed for Tahiti. He stayed there for ten years, returning once to try to sell his work and raise capital to return. His life in Tahiti was tempestuous. He married three times, all teenage island girls (13 and 14). This was considered a marriageable age in the Tahitian culture, but in western culture it is considered pedophilia. Gaugin was not the only French colonist that took advantage of the Tahitians desire for status or financial gain. These weddings were not legally binding and all three of his wives eventually left him. Gaugin used his wives for the models in countless paintings. The model for both of the women in this painting is Teha’amana, his first Tahitian muse, lover and eventually wife.

In 1901 when he became seriously ill with syphilis and in trouble with the French authorities, he left town. Alone and impoverished, Gauguin died of a stroke in the Marquesas Islands on May 8, 1903. He has been championed and reviled by art history. His painting was magnificent, but his lifestyle seems unacceptable.

If you would like to see the original painting: bit.ly/43HIFQS