When Van Gogh and Gauguin began cohabiting in 1888 the relationship was inevitably rocky. However, the impact they had on each other’s art during those brief months was cataclysmic. This lecture will chart their individual developments up to their time in Arles, Southern France, their turbulent time together and Gauguin’s trip to the South Seas. It will compare several works and explore letters and diaries to shed meaning on their shared experience and explosive natures. It will end with a discussion about why these artists remain favourites despite certain distasteful aspects of their lives.
Lecturer Jacqueline Cockburn is a linguist and art historian with first degrees in French, Spanish and Art History. Her PhD in Art History was taken at Birkbeck College, University of London where she also lectured on Western European Art History for 20 years. She has published The Spanish Song Companion and contributed to various academic publications on art historical subjects. Jacqueline was also Head of Department of Art History at Westminster School for 16 years before launching her new career as a free-lance lecturer and establishing her own art tour company.
Presented in association with the Wellington Decorative and Fine Arts Society.
Feature image: Detail from Vincent Van Gogh Painting by Paul Gauguin, 1888