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Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Do we really need another book about the famous French painter, Paul Gauguin? Author Jean-Louis Saquet asks that very question in his introduction. "Everything has been written about Gauguin and his work, so why start again?" the author begins. Why indeed. But, whilst Gauguin has been exhibited, discussed, analysed, and written about countless times, few, if any, have really taken a look at Tahiti, the isolated Pacific island home of the artist and the source of much of his subject material. Anyone who has studied, or even just looked at Gauguin's work, visualizes a primitive utopia, a sanctuary of a simple life untouched by the rest of the civilized world. That's what attracted the artist, or so he claimed. That's what he painted. But was it as uncivilized as he depicted? Was it a simple utopia?
In Tahiti Handbook of Gauguin, Saquet takes another look at Gauguin, primarily looking at his island home of Tahiti. Saquet explores the island's history, its culture, its way of life, its produce, the flora, even the geological creation of the islands themselves and much more. He uses historic photographs, drawings, and paintings, not just those of Gauguin. He quite literally paints a picture of a totally different Tahiti than the one captured by Gauguin. Saquet's Tahiti is one that is quite civilized, has a very sophisticated political system and is quite self-sufficient, as well as being a good trading partner for the rest of the French occupied world of the late nineteenth-century.
This is a fascinating look at Tahiti during the time that French painter Paul Gauguin lived and worked there. It's much more than a guide book on Tahiti, much more than a look at a much interpreted famous artist. Well done!
