Van gogh biography ear

The intense and turbulent friendship between the Post-Impressionist masters Paul Gauguin and Vincent van Gogh lasted only 63 days and ended in one of the most bizarre acts in the history of art — van Gogh brutally slicing off his own ear.

But while the friendship became intense and fraught, it began with the brightest of hopes.

In October of 1888, the 40-year-old Gauguin arrived in the sleepy French city of Arles after months of insistent invitations from van Gogh, then 35.

The Dutch-born van Gogh, little known outside avant-garde Parisian circles, dreamed of transforming Arles into an artist’s commune and believed that Gauguin, an older and more established artist, was destined to be its leader.

For van Gogh, the long-awaited arrival of his mentor was a sign that his vision was finally coming true, but Gauguin had different motivations.

Gauguin’s art dealer in Paris was Vincent’s brot