Visit French Polynesia - What To Do In The Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas are as wild and untamed as the horses roaming freely through their rugged terrain. Unlike the other islands in French Polynesia, there are no lagoons or protected coral reefs surrounding these landscapes. Instead, steep volcanic mountains plunge straight into the pounding Pacific Ocean, while jagged ridges lay interspersed between deep valleys and thriving jungles.
The Marquesas Archipelago is one of the most remote island groups in the world. These distant volcanic islands are located farther away from a continental landmass than any other island in existence. They are so isolated they even have their own time zone. Flight time to get here from Tahiti is approximately 3.5 hours.
Known as Te Henua Enata, The Land of Men, these primitive islands will call to your innermost savage. You can explore their rugged terrain and discover a land that few people have seen before you. Throughout the islands, there are many archaeological and ceremonial sites including houses, shrines, stone statues, agricultural terraces and burial grounds that testify to the existence of an ancient civilization.
The islands include Nuku Hiva, Hiva Oa, Fatu Hiva, Ua Pou, Ua Huka, Tahuata and other small, uninhabited islands. Nuku Hiva and Hiva Oa are the only two islands with hotel accommodations. These include the Nuku Hiva Pearl Lodge and Hiva Oa Pearl Lodge. There are also a handful of pensions and guesthouses available around the islands.
Nuku Hiva, located on the northwestern edge, is the largest of the Marquesas Islands. Known as the Mystical Island, it is home to many rare and magnificent attractions such as the black sand beach of Anaho; Hakaui Valley waterfall, the third tallest in the world; Cathedral of Notre Dame, which houses intricate stone and wooden carvings from each island; and countless underwater caverns that shelter an impressive variety of flora and fauna. The main town of Taiohae, the administrative capital of the Marquesas, is a small yet lively port, especially during yachting season.
Hiva Oa, the second largest island, is located in the southeastern group. Home to the harbor town of Atuona, this island is usually the first port of call for sailboats crossing west over the Pacific. This is the most historic island in the group, with some of the largest ancient tiki statues in French Polynesia. Known as Gauguin's Island, Hiva Oa is also the final resting place for painter Paul Gauguin and poet Jacques Brel. Both artists are buried at the Cimetière du Calvaire, Calvary Cemetery, overlooking Atuona.
In the spirit of true artistry, it is here in the Marquesas Islands that many Polynesian art forms originated. The locals have proudly safeguarded the ancient techniques of tattoo, sculpture and woodcarving. They are also leaders in the revival of the traditional pahu (drum). Every four years, Nuku Hiva hosts the Marquesas Arts Festival, a celebration of the renowned artistic talent and deeply rooted traditions of these islands.
The best way to experience the primitive beauty of these faraway islands is to take an adventure cruise aboard the Aranui V. This working cargo freighter, which transports everything from food and medicine to fuel, also operates as a cruise ship for passengers who want to explore each of the fascinating Marquesas Islands.
The Marquesas, more than any other island in French Polynesia, beckon a very different type of traveler—one with an innate thirst for adventure. As you ride horseback through these wild and untamed landscapes, you will fall completely captive to their powerful and dreamlike qualities.
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The Marquesas: Hiva Oa - Paul Gauguin, Jacques Brel, and art everywhere on this painted island.
The Marquesas island of Hiva Oa, home of French painter Paul Gauguin and Belgian singer Jacques Brel, greeted us with a misty, rainbow and lively music from beautifully tattooed locals, that welcomed us to explore this island paradise.
We boarded rickety wooden busses driven by guitar wielding drivers who carted us up the mountain to the Calvary Cemetery, to visit the graves of the two most famous residents here, Gauguin and Brel, where devoted fans from every corner of the world paid their respects with messages of love and respect etched on stones.
Next we dove into the world of Gauguin visiting his museum where an impressive collection of his work, and work of local artist in the style of Gauguin is presented, along with his workshop home, the Maison du Jouir, which walking though gives you an amazing understanding of this genius artists life.
Finally, walking back to the ship I stopped off at a darling little restaurant Chez Georges et Tahu, where we had an absolutely fabulous meal along the seaside. Highly recommended.
Before we knew it we were back on our floating palace the Aranui 5 and Hiva Oa said goodbye with yet another beautiful rainbow. Hope to see you again soon, beautiful island in the Polynesian sea.
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Paul Gauguin, né le 7 juin 1848 à Paris , il est mort, le 8 mai 1903, à Atuona, Hiva Oa, aux îles Marquises, est un peintre post impressionniste. Chef de file de l'École de Pont-Aven et inspirateur des nabis, il est considéré comme l'un des peintres français majeurs du 19 ème siècle, et l'un des plus importants précurseurs de l'art moderne avec Munch et Cézanne.
Eugene Henri Paul Gauguin was born on June 7, 1848, in Paris, France. His father, Clovis Gaughin, was a Republican editor who died on his way to Peru while escaping from Louis Napoleon. His widowed mother was a Peruvian Creole daughter of writer Flora Tristan. Young Gauguin spent early childhood in Lima, Peru, until 1855, then studied in Orleans, France. He joined the Merchant Marine in 1865 and spent the next six years sailing between France and South America, then spent a hitch in the French navy. In 1871 he returned to France, settled in Paris and became a stockbroker.
In 1874 Gauguin saw the first Impressionist exhibition, which gave him his desire to become an artist. Enchanted with art, he spent some 17,000 francs on paintings by Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Auguste Renoir and other impressionists. Gauguin discovered art as a way to escape from the pressures of civilization. He met Camille Pissarro and Paul Cezanne in 1874, and joined them for painting on weekends and holidays. His debut in the Salon took place in 1876. He also participated in the Impressionist exhibitions in 1879, 1880 and 1882. By 1884 he became a full-time artist, partly because the bank that employed him had difficulties. Paris became too expensive and Gauguin moved with his wife and five children to Rouen, then to Copenhagen, Denmark, and then back to Paris. In 1885 he and his wife separated and she took the children with her to her family. Gauguin went into depression and at one time attempted suicide.
He met Vincent van Gogh in Paris in 1886 and they became friends. Van Gogh's brother Theo was also Gauguin's art dealer. In 1888 he received an invitation from Vincent and joined him in October of that year in Arles. There Van Gogh presented him several paintings of sunflowers, but their cooperation lasted only for two months. Their arguments about art and life were exacerbated by drinking and rivalry for prostitutes. Van Gogh's mental state was alternating between fits of depression and lucidity. At times his madness led to aggressive actions. In December of 1888 Van Gogh attacked Gauguin with an open razor, was stopped, but eventually cut part of his own ear off and gave it to a prostitute. Gauguin sent a note to Van Gogh's brother Theo and left forever.
In 1891 Gauguin organized an exhibition to finance his project of living and working in places where he could live with ecstasy, calmness and art. His paintings were bought by Edgar Degas and others, and the proceeds amounted to 10,000 francs. He started his flight from the trappings of civilization by becoming a full-time artist and this time he sailed to the tropics for good. Gauguin left behind everything that is artificial and conventional. He settled in Tahiti and later in the Marquesas Islands. There he was accepted by the native community and adopted their traditional lifestyle. He fathered a son by his Tahitian model Pau'ura and a daughter with his Tahitian model Vaa'oho. From 1893 to 1895 he made farewell visits to Paris and Copenhagen. There he brought some of his Polynesian-inspired works to show.
Gauguin gradually parted from Impressionism. He discovered the primitive art of Polynesia and was influenced by it. He was calling his new style synthetic symbolism. Gauguin transformed his art to radical simplifications of composition by giving his paintings an ornamental character. His Arearea (Joyousness 1892), Nave, Nave Moe (Miraculous Source 1894) and other paintings made in Tahiti are sincere depictions of an untamed nature with people being an organic part of it. His largest work was painted in Tahiti, the philosophical and highly decorative D'ou venons nous? Que sommes-nous? Ou allons-nous? (Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? 1897), now in the permanent collection of the Boston Museum of Fine Art.
Paul Gauguin moved around several islands of Polynesia and finally settled in Atuona, Marqueses. He was fined by the colonial administration, had problems with the Catholic church and was sentenced to three months in prison. Before he could begin his sentence, however, he died on May 8, 1903, and was laid to rest in Calvary Cemetery, Atuona, Hiva'Oa, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Steve Shelokhonov
Paul Gauguin's Art
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (7 June 1848 -- 8 May 1903) was a leading French Post-Impressionist artist. He was an important figure in the Symbolist movement as a painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramist, and writer. His bold experimentation with colouring led directly to the Synthetist style of modern art while his expression of the inherent meaning of the subjects in his paintings, under the influence of the cloisonnist style, paved the way to Primitivism and the return to the pastoral. He was also an influential proponent of wood engraving and woodcuts as art forms.
Gauguin, frustrated by lack of recognition at home and financially destitute, sailed to the tropics to escape European civilization and everything that is artificial and conventional.
Gauguin died on 8 May 1903 and is buried in Calvary Cemetery (Cimetière Calvaire), Atuona, Hiva 'Oa, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.