Book Review: The Yellow House - Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Nine Turbulent Weeks in Arles by Martin Gayford - Page 2

Author Gayford does a nice job of setting the scene in many ways. He discusses how Van Gogh's erratic behavior and dress turned off so many of the locals. (Until the more stable Gauguin showed up, Van Gogh could rarely get anyone to sit for him as subjects of his work; in many of the portraits done at this time, Van Gogh is painting the subject from the side because the person is facing Gauguin.) He discusses how Gauguin set up systems to keep their money straight. He discusses how closely the two must have sat as they painted, and how Van Gogh would often talk and pace and suddenly paint in a frenzy, which must have been distracting to the slower, methodical style of Gauguin. He offers multiple examples of how the artists were influenced by each other, and how they created many of their most famous works during this short period together.

Despite being the Post-Impressionist odd couple, Gauguin and Van Gogh got along well for much of their time together. (Gayford does make it clear that Gauguin seemed to tolerate the ravings of Van Gogh, who often got very worked up over topics both serious and inconsequential.) When the weather was warm enough they would take their easels and paint outdoors, then come back where Gauguin would cook before they capped off many an evening in the local brothel.

While Gayford chronicles Vincent's increasingly strange behavior (including showing up at Gauguin's bedside in the middle of the night and then wandering away and falling quickly asleep), it's not clear that any one event caused Van Gogh to finally slip over the line. However, he was perceptive enough to worry that his behavior might drive Gauguin away, the thought of which only seemed to heighten his state of anxiety. Gaugain, probably rightly so, started to fear a little for his own safety within the tight confines of the Yellow House. When one night Van Gogh's behavior was worrisome enough to make Gauguin spend the night in a hotel, a despondent Van Gogh, who was now sure Gauguin would soon leave, famously sliced off his ear. He would soon be confined to a mental institution, and would be in and out of such institutions for the few remaining years of his life, until finally committing suicide at age 37.

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