"In due course, I will let you know my new address": Gauguin's move from Tahiti to Hiva Oa
Autograph letter signed ("Paul Gauguin").
4to. 1 p. on brown paper. Framed and glazed. In French.
€ 24,000.00
To his art dealer and sponsor Ambroise Vollard, confirming the receipt of two monthly instalments and hinting at a possible relocation to the Marquesas Islands. One of the reasons for such a plan was an influenca epidemic "killing many old people and plagueing everyone else", as he describes it in the letter. Another factor were rising costs of living, partly due to the San Francisco plague of 1900-04, which forced ships with supplies for Tahiti to quarantine before unloading. Apart from these practical considerations, Gauguin also had artistic reasons for his plan to move: "It will give me completely new elements for my paintings".
As this important letter highlights, Tahiti did not turn out to be the pristine paradise Gauguin had been longing to find. In the fall of 1901, Gauguin moved to Hiva Oa, the largest of the Marquesas Islands, but his initial enthusiasm waned quickly. Nevertheless, Gauguin was highly productive during his final years on Hiva Oa.
In his day, Ambroise Vollard (1866-1939) was one of the most important art dealers in French contemporary art. In 1899 he became Gauguin's main patron and would support the artist until his premature death in 1903. Vollard paid Gauguin monthly advances and provided art material. In return, Gauguin was obliged to sell him 25 unseen paintings over a year at a set price. This agreement allowed Gauguin, who had been living in financially unstable conditions for many years, to move to the Marquesas Islands and to spend his final months in considerable comfort. After Gauguin's death Vollard organized two important posthumous exhibitions in Paris, helping to popularize the painter who saw very limited success during his lifetime.
Well preserved.
