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Stranger in paradise
By ANGELA DOLAND, Associated Press
The French painter originally had hoped for a trip to Indochina, but his plans fell through. Settling on Tahiti, he imagined an unspoiled paradise -- and instead found a society overseen by missionaries and French bureaucrats. He was sick with syphilis and other diseases during his time here, suffering so much that he swallowed arsenic to try to kill himself. Despite it all, Gauguin's Polynesian paintings are all grace and mystery, evoking island life as he wanted to see it: a place where languorous women smile into the distance, horses graze in vanilla groves and baskets overflow with breadfruit and bananas. In Tahiti today, you have to look hard to find tributes to Gauguin. It's astonishing, but the South Pacific island's museums have not a single Gauguin painting. Next year, to mark the 100th anniversary of Gauguin's death, Paris is hosting at least two major exhibits of the post-Impressionist painter. Yet French Polynesia, where Gauguin made his name, probably will have only a few minor shows: a photo retrospective, for example, or an exhibit on paintings of Tahiti -- without any by Gauguin. Unfortunately, in Tahiti most things evoking Gauguin's memory are kitschy or touristy. There's a Paul Gauguin cruise ship. Visitors can buy Gauguin shot glasses, coffee beans and chips. A brand of Polynesian bottled water, Vaimato, has a label showing a Gauguin painting of a mother and child at a waterfall.
Anyone in Tahiti on a Gauguin pilgrimage will have to do some digging. Even those who have just a passing interest in the painter might be inspired to learn more once they've seen a Tahitian sunset or slept in the shade of a banyan tree. Tour guide William Leeteg is one source of help. Leeteg grew up on the island, and his father was Edgar William Leeteg, an American artist who lived in Tahiti. William Leeteg's half-day guided tours in English take visitors on a loop of the island; en route, he points out where one of Gauguin's houses stood and takes visitors to a fern-covered grotto where the painter bathed.
The tour includes a stop at the island's Gauguin museum. It's set on the seaside, with a green mountain rising in the background. Red ginger blossoms and ferns line tile walkways. A few wandering roosters poke around the Tiki statues in the gardens. The interesting little museum recounts Gauguin's life through artifacts and photos. It has a few wooden spoons carved by Gauguin, and it has a sizable collection of Gauguin fakes.
What's missing, of course, are his evocative paintings. The museum and the local government are in a spat, and the government has cut funding, leaving the museum to worry about its future and rely on its souvenir stand for income, museum officials say. Most visitors to the museum are tourists. Yet most people don't come to Tahiti for culture; they come to swim, dive and surf. Many make a cursory stop in Tahiti before going on to other paradise islands, such as Bora Bora or Moorea, which are covered with thatched-roof luxury resorts.
As for Tahitians, most simply aren't interested in Gauguin, says Bellinda Hart, who heads the association that runs the museum. They're focused on their local traditions -- for example, wood sculpture and intricate geometric tattooing.
Tahiti is part of French Polynesia -- former colonies that are now French overseas territories. It is still governed in part by Paris, which is halfway around the world, with a 12-hour time difference. Tahitians speak French, and most visitors eat croissants and drink cafe creme for breakfast. The island's capital, Papeete, can be stifling, with ugly modern buildings, hectic traffic and overpriced shops selling postcards, pareos and black pearls. One site worth visiting -- though very overpriced -- is the covered market, which sells straw bags, shell jewelry, carved wooden bowls and freshly cut blossoms. To get a glimpse of island nature as Gauguin might have seen it, visitors should rent a car and see the more rural side of the island, which has black sand beaches with excellent surfing and mist-capped green hills in the distance. A trip all the way around the island, with stops, takes about a day. Most visitors will want to see the island's waterfalls, eat at stands selling tangy mangos and floury breadfruit, and stop at the Gauguin museum. Here, the focus is on Gauguin's notorious life, not on his work. The exhibit stretches from Gauguin's birth in 1848, tracing his childhood in Peru, his careers as a merchant marine and a successful stockbroker, and his decision to become a painter. At 35, a father of five, Gauguin left his job, saying, "From now on, I will paint every day." In 1891, Gauguin abandoned his wife and five children, setting off for Tahiti. In an interview before leaving, he told Echo de Paris: "I wish to live in peace and to avoid being influenced by our civilization. I only desire to create a simple art." Thus began his life in Tahiti, where he took a series of teenage lovers, painted constantly, struggled with illness and tried to cut himself off from "civilization."
The painter died in 1903 at 54 in French Polynesia, worn out by a life of hard living. His body was found at his home on the Marquesas Islands, where he had posted a sign on the door reading: "House of Pleasure." There was no eulogy at his burial, nor were there flowers. Gauguin is buried on the island of Hiva Oa in the Marquesas Islands. A local civil servant, taking note of Gauguin's death, wrote that there was little hope of repaying his debts: "The few pictures left by the late painter . . . have little prospect of finding purchasers."
If you go
GETTING THERE: Flights from the United States to Tahiti leave from Los Angeles and take about 7 hours. Air France and Air Tahiti Nui are a few of the carriers that offer direct service from Los Angeles to Tahiti. Flights also are available from cities such as Paris and Sydney. WHEN TO GO: Tahiti has year-round warm, tropical weather. STAYING THERE: Hotel Royal Tahitien, just outside Papeete, is set on the beach, with an excellent restaurant and a small pool. Rooms are comfortable, and the staff is friendly. A bus trip from the hotel into the city center takes about five minutes and buses run frequently. Try to persuade the front desk to give you the price for "locals" -- about $100 for a single. Phone: (689) 50-40-40, WHAT TO SEE: If you don't have a car, consider taking a half-day group island tour; it includes waterfalls, an underwater wildlife reserve and the Paul Gauguin museum. William Leeteg is one English-speaking guide. Phone: (689) 77-20-03. Scuba diving and snorkeling are excellent in Tahiti; you can rent equipment there. Don't miss the nearby island of Moorea, a ferry trip away. Consider staying on Moorea instead of on Tahiti. More package deals are available there. PAYING THERE: Tahiti is expensive. Don't forget to pack basics such as sunglasses and medication. The currency is the Pacific franc. One dollar is worth roughly 118 Polynesian francs. FOR MORE INFORMATION: The official tourism Web site is www.gototahiti.com/. This includes lists of hotels, tour companies and dive operators.
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