VAN GOGH AND GAUGUIN - A TALK BY MICHAEL GAYFORD - MAN WITH A BLUE SCARF - RICHMOND

The presenter of this talk is well known as:
A Man with a Blue Scarf.

He is the subject of a painting by Lucien Freud which has been publicised in the media recently.
The book is called 'Man with a Blue Scarf: on sitting for a Portrait by Lucien Freud'.

A podcast about Martin sitting for his portrait is from the Museum of Modern Art website, here

MOMA AND MARTIN GAYFORD

Michael answered questions about sitting for Freud at the end of his talk.
For example, did Freud talk a lot?  Yes, apparently but Michael said the more he talked, the slower he painted, and he was not sure this was a good thing. 

The subject of the talk by Martin at Richmond was the 5 weeks the two artists, Van Gogh and Gauguin,  spent together in Arles, France, in the autumn of 1888.
Michael  outlined the background of Van Gogh's residence in Arles and why he lived in the Yellow House.
Apparently he lived in a hotel to start with, and the house was empty, next to the bar he frequented.
Van Gogh had enough money to rent the house, decorate it and buy furniture.
He had met Gaguin before, in Paris.
Gaguin might not have been easy to live with, but I bet Van Gogh was absolutely unbearable over a long time, because he talked incessantly!