Those Crazy Bohemians (Drinks and Drugs)

Disclaimer: This indie author is in no way advocating the use of drugs or abuse of alcohol by posting this. I am simply reporting the facts that contributed to the wild, crazy bohemian era of late nineteenth and early twentieth century Montmartre.

That said, partying was every bit as serious of a business as painting for most of the artists of Montmartre during that aforementioned heyday. For one thing, there was a nunnery in Montmartre that produced a cheap vin rouge (red wine). Can one blame the artists for wanting to contribute to the local economy? Besides, they were contributing to the church, right? :)

Even though vin was popular, the drink most of us think of when we think of those artists is absinthe. Green fairy. Ah, yes. Riding the green fairy was a frequent pass time for most of these creative artists. If you look closely at many of the paintings, you will see a glass with green in it. Ever wonder what that was? Absinthe on its own tasted horrible. It is made from wormwood and had a very bitter taste. That's why a slotted spoon was placed across one's glass and a sugar cube placed on the spoon. Then, if you were doing it the classy way, water was slowly poured over the sugar, melting it into the absinthe.

If you were in a hurry, you bypassed the class, poured alcohol on the sugar and lit it on fire. Then you turned the spoon over and dumped the flaming cube into the absinthe. Either way, the clear liquid became cloudy. But not as cloudy as the mind of the partaker. It has a chemical in it called thujone, which was blamed for all kinds of behavior. This is unlikely, however. Today we know the thujone in absinthe just isn't that strong. What was more likely is that dishonest bottlers were putting rubbing alcohol in the bottles and less absinthe. That could account for all kinds of problems, including death!

Hard drugs were not only widely available but legal. At one point there were over 1,500 legally operating opium dens in Paris. The French Navy even looked the other way when sailors used it...until they caused a submarine accident. When The Moulin Rouge opened there was a fake elephant on the property. Inside, a gentleman (?) could partake in opium and prostitutes.

Heroin became legal once doctors began realizing opium caused problems. In fact, the same makers of Bayer also made heroin - and they decided aspirin had too many dangerous side affects so they kept that from the public and marketing heroin!

Yes, at different points during this era one could buy heroin or opium candy, cough drops, smoke it,do whatever they wanted with it and even gave it to children who were sick. Hashish was plentiful and also legal. Smoked and eaten, most artists were either high or drunk a good majority of the time. Perhaps that helped them see things in a new way!

It's interesting to read about how many of these artists went to insane asylums periodically, tried to commit suicide, became alcoholics, and actually did end up taking their life. It had to be sometimes caused by drugs and alcohol. Other times it was probably caused by the paints themselves. No one yet understood much about the toxic qualities of many mineral based paints. In fact, Paris Green (the most popular green for Impressionist painters) was also being used as rat poison in the Paris sewers. Hmmmmm. Nobody could figure out that perhaps that wasn't good to have on your skin?

Then there were the solvents and sometimes poorly ventilated surroundings. Inhaling turpentine for hours at a time couldn't do much for the brain cells. No wonder they drank and got high. They probably usually felt like hell.

Heavy partiers, yes, but at a very heavy price. On the surface, it appears like a fun, crazy time. Dig a little deeper and one finds that many people paid for the fun with their sanity and their lives. Oh, you crazy bohemians. You were so decadent, and yet so innocent. If only you knew the heavy price you were likely to pay for all of that pleasure. And perhaps you still would have done it. Live wasn't easy and being numb for awhile was quite likely a blessed relief.

Caddy Rowland is a novelist and painter. Her social media links follow.

To find out about her novels (including The Gastien Series, a story that begins with a bohemian artist in France) visit http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005FW8BZE

Sign up for New Release Newsletter by Email: http://eepurl.com/rfjaX

Gastien Fanpage: www.facebook.com/Gastien.Beauchamp

Author Blog: www.caddyrowlandblog.blogspot.com

Author Email: caddyauthor@yahoo.com

Twitter: @caddyorpims

Those Crazy Bohemians (Unsung hero: Pére Tanguy)

If I asked  a large number of people to raise their hands if they knew what Impressionism was, I'm willing to wager that a fair number of them would do so. A decent amount would still keep their hands up if I asked how many could name at least one Impressionist by last name.

But if I asked how many could keep their hands raised by naming the man who made it possible for many of these great artists to keep painting, I am pretty darn sure that almost all of the hands would go down. Unsung heroes tend to become an "unknown" very quickly. Which probably is why they're called unsung, right?

Portrait of Pére Tanguy by Vincent van Gogh

Julien Tanguy was one such hero. He was so important to these bohemian painters that they even nicknamed him "Pére" Tanguy (pére meaning father). He owned an art supply shop in Montmartre, and was looked up to as a true rebel with a cause: he had spent some time in prison for his political beliefs. This, of course, endeared him to the free-thinking bohemian artists.

He had opened his art supply store in 1870. Pére was heavily involved in the Paris Commune that ruled Paris for two short months in 1871.  During La Semaine Sanglante (The Bloody Week) estimates vary from 6,000 to 50,000 as to the number of men, women, and children killed when the government troops stepped in and forced the Paris Commune out of power. Pére avoided execution and somehow was not kept forever in jail, but he made sure he stayed in the more rural, bohemian area of Montmartre as a precaution.

Besides, that is where all the excitement was happening in the art world. Pére also began to show Van Gogh's paintings (but never sold one). Soon he also had many works by Monet, Sisley, Gauguin, Seurat and Cézanne. As prized as a Cézanne painting would become later, he was very much considered a "painter's painter" and didn't sell well during his lifetime, either. In fact, from 1877 to 1893 the only place where one would find a Cézanne in the whole city was in Tanguy's art supply store.

So, why was he so important to these bohemian artists of nineteenth century? Well, ignore the fact that he showed their work and tried to build an audience for them and consider this: most of those artists were dirt poor. Many days they didn't eat. That also means they had no money for canvas and paint. Without canvas and paint, the paintings that we now prize from that era would have never been created.

They certainly were created, though, thanks to "Pére Tanguy. You see, Pére let them buy paint and canvas on credit. No, he didn't change them interest or high prices. He simply gave them what they needed with only a verbal promise to pay him whenever they could. He had to have known full well that many of those supplies would never be paid for, yet he continued to honor the artist's verbal agreements.

One could call him a fool. I'm betting his wife often did. It isn't hard to see why some would call him that. It isn't a very smart way to run a business, and Pére was not wealthy. He wasn't even close to middle-class. What he was, though, was a believer in the talent of outrageously new thinking artists, who had the nerve to show people the world in brand new ways. When you consider that, it isn't hard to see why an anarchist would have a tender spot for these crazy bohemian painters who always promised, seldom paid, but always hoped to.

Promise and hope. Without it, the world is a much colder place. With it, great things can happen. The art world saw painting change forever in great ways - thanks to an unsung hero. "Pére"? Oh, oui, indeed he was like their father. They didn't disappoint. His "children" did him proud.

Portrait of Pére Tanguy by Vincent van Gogh

Those Crazy Bohemians (Le Chat Noir)

It's been awhile, but I am back to my "Crazy Bohemians" theme. Although I love to blog, writing novels and painting take up most of my time. It's amazing how quickly time passes before I realize that I've let my blog go!

Here are a couple of questions for you: Do you know where stand-up comedy got its start? How about the very first flickering in the brain about making movies? No? Well, I can tell you where. So could any of those crazy bohemians of nineteenth century Paris!

The answer would be Le Chat Noir. What does a "black cat" have to do with comedy and movies? Nothing - and yet everything. You see, Le Chat Noir is French for The Black Cat. Le Chat Noir was a cabaret in Montmartre that fanned the flames of creativity that had been lit earlier, taking plays, music, painting, and acting to new heights that, until then, people hadn't even dreamt about.

Emile Goudeau, a journalist in Paris, had a group of writers and artists that met at his home on the Left Bank. They were called Les Hydropathes ("those who are afraid of water"). Young men, they did indeed prefer cheap wine and beer-in great quantities-to plain old H2O. They were, however, outgrowing Goudeau's home. Rodolphe Salis, an artist who came from money, had acquired a two room building which he had turned into a cabaret. He knew Goudeau and persuaded him to move Les Hydropathes to his cabaret in Montmartre. Salis himself had been entertaining artists in his home prior to opening the cabaret.

On November 18, 1881. a torch lit procession crossed the River Seine from the Left Bank and made it's way to Le Chat Noir. A man dressed in full Swiss Guard regalia headed up the parade, carrying a halberd (battle ax and pike). Behind him marched a large group of very drunk, very loud young men; carrying wine and singing. This signaled the grand opening of Le Chat Noir.

When patrons avoided the darker room in the back, Salis casually made sure he mentioned within earshot of several artists that the back room was reserved for the truly cutting edge creative types. All of a sudden he had no problem trying to get people to gather in there! Le Chat Noir was an open stage most nights. Musicians, singers, poets, and writers would just get on their feet and present their current work. They were never paid. They were, however, critiqued by their peers, always loudly and sometimes harshly. However, they were also encouraged and nurtured, with many becoming great talents. Artists also brought their paintings for critique. Loud arguments about painting often followed.

The place was decorated with a hodge-podge of things, mostly giving it a Louis XIII feel. Salis himself was gifted in promotion. He started a newspaper Le Chat Noir and sold advertising in it. Writers also wrote stories for it. Some were very avant garde.

 Le Chat Noir Journal

He did everything he could to publicize his cabaret. Many accused him of making money off the artists who only received wine and absinthe as payment. One time he met patrons at the door only to announce his death! He then led a funeral procession through the streets, ending up back at Le Chat Noir.

Salis hired Steinlen to design posters and a sign for the cabaret. Salis had seen a black alley cat hanging around during the renovation and felt the raggedy feline made a good symbol for the wild nightlife that would be found at the place. One of the resulting posters by Steinlen remains one of the most well know images to come out of that era in Paris (of which Montmartre was, and is, part of). Some even said that when the cat's tail was shown in an upright position  on the Journal or in ads it symbolized a male in the "aroused position".

Théophile Steinlen's 1896 advertisement for a tour to other cities ("coming soon") of the Le Chat Noir's troupe of cabaret entertainers

Because of the open stage, and the dialog between a performer and the audience, stand-up comedy was born. Much of the comedy, and almost all of the songs, was politically radical and/or raunchy. Everyone who was anyone in the arts community was seen at this lively cabaret.

Soon the bourgeoisie and many gentry started coming to Le Chat Noir on a lark. Salis and cabaret singer Aristide Bruand became known for being loudly rude to their upper-class guests, banishing them into a dark corner if they came late. If they left during a performance? They were called out and loudly insulted! The songs didn't change, and many found themselves the subject of amusement or derision. Still, they came - because Le Chat Noir was the place to be seen. Salis moved the cabaret twice more while it was operating, to accommodate the growing throngs.

Shadow plays were created by using zinc to cut out characters and then shining light on them to reflect shadows on a white screen.  These shadow plays were insanely popular with all classes and soon scripts were written and music accompanied the plays. This, then, was the rough beginning of cinema.

In 1897, shortly after Salis' death, Le Chat Noir closed. When Picasso and others looked for it when they arrived for the Exposition in 1900, they were greatly disappointed to find out that it had ceased to exist. They had missed out on perhaps the most popular artist's cabaret to ever exist.

Ad for Le Chat Noir

Thank you for joining me today to learn more about those crazy bohemains. I promise I'll be back with more soon!

Those Crazy Bohemians (Party at Au Lapin Agile!)

One of the two most popular places for artists to hang out during the whole bohemian era was a notorious, raucous  cabaret named Au Lapin Agile. Au Lapin Agile was located close to Place de Tertre in Montmartre and had been in existence since around 1850. It had always been a place where people gathered for sing-alongs. Sounds innocent enough, right?

The Au Lapin Agile attracted all kinds, however. Wagoneers with their knives stuck in the table tops as they drank, local villagers, artists, writers, pimps, down and outers, and anarchists all gathered there.In fact, the original name was Cabaret Das Assassins because a band of assassins broke in and killed the owners son.The songs sang were often either political and inflammatory or sexual in nature.

In 1875 an artist named Andre Gill painted a sign that hung outside the building showing a rabbit in a chef hat jumping out of a saucepan; a tribute to one of the dishes served there. People soon started calling the place Le Lapin a Gill, which meant "Gill's Rabbit". It evolved into Cabaret Au Lapin Agile (The Nimble Rabbit Cabaret). Most simply called it Au Lapin Agile or Lapin Agile. Once the name changed it became even more popular with artists, still drawing the same questionable crowd in addition to well off bourgeois slumming it for an evening of ribald fun.

There is conflicting information on who owned this cabaret for a time. Some information shows that a woman owned it for awhile (in fact during the time the sign was painted). I can't recall her name, but I believe she was a singer in another venue for awhile. Other references indicate that the artist who painted the sign (Andre Gill) actually owned it for a time. Whoever owned it did little to discourage riffraff from frequenting the place, but they were also very kind to artists.

Paintings were sometimes accepted in exchange for a meal. There was also an unspoken rule that at the end of the night any artist who had no money to eat would be given soup. Artists also had total freedom to become as drunk as they wished, fight, and pass out in a chair at one of the tables. They were not to be disturbed when they did so. Police were not to be called, either. In the morning they would simply wake up and stumble away.

Toward the end of the nineteenth century it was constantly packed with painters, writers, comedians, sculptors, poets, musicians and singers who all thrived on the energy and sharing of ideas there. Also, ownership had changed and a man named Frédé ran it. He had owned a previous cabaret and also pushed a wagon of goods around town. Because of that he owned a donkey, who would often ramble around the various tables in front of the cabaret, along with a flea bitten dog. Many nights Frédé played his guitar or cello as patrons sang.

In the early 1900's Picasso made Au Lapin Agile a favorite haunt of his.  He did a painting titled Au Lapin Agile in which he was represented as a harlequin and Frédé is shown playing the guitar. It belonged to the cabaret and Frédé sold the painting in 1912 for $20! In 1989 it was auctioned for $40.7 MILLION dollars.

Just think about how many drinks and dinners that would have bought all of those crazy bohemians! (More to come later on this era of artists)

Those Crazy Bohemians! (What is Impressionism Anyway?)

Impressionism. We have been talking about it for awhile now on this blog. Most people have heard of it even if they aren't particularly into art or painting. But for many it remains just a word.  What defined Impressionism? Why was it so different from previous painting style?

We already established that artists knew they had to do something different in order to still be valuable.  The camera had seen to that. Impressionism was essentially freedom. It had started a few years earlier, but it's first "launching" was in 1874.  The Cooperative and Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptures and Engravers decided to have a showing at the studio of Felix Nadar, a journalist who was also a photographer. Thirty artists (among them Monet, Degas, Pissarro,Cezanne, Renoir, Sisley, and Morisot) exhibited together eight times between 19874 and 1886.

It was a rebellion against Academie des Beaux-Arts. The Academie was considered the authority in the realist styles of French painting. If you didn't paint like they insisted, you were nothing in their eyes. The Salon de Paris was their annual art exhibit.  For new artists and struggling artists it was extremely important to get into this show. They could win prizes, earn commissions, get reviews, and become a known artist with a good reputation.

The Impressionists were painting with different brush strokes, using brighter colors, and paying much less attention to detail.  Instead, they were interested in how light affected a subject during different times of the day or season. They also were painting landscapes and community life instead of religious, mythology, or family portrait types of paintings. Some of them also decided to stop trying to give depth to a painting.  A canvas was two dimensional and so they painted their buildings flat. The artists mentioned above were routinely getting rejected over and over again. Can you imagine Monet or Cezanne being seen as "not good enough"?!

In 1863 the Academie rejected Manet's painting Luncheon of the Grass because of the nude woman in it. This rejection was considered ridiculous by Manet's fans, even those who were traditional arts patrons. That year so many artists were rejected that Napoleon II decreed the start of the Salon of the Refused. The reviewers, however, were rabid. Cezanne and Monet got verbally beaten up the worst. Their work was called "unfinished sketches" and "impressions". Here is what one said:

I"mpression—I was certain of it. I was just telling myself that, since I was impressed, there had to be some impression in it ... and what freedom, what ease of workmanship! Wallpaper in its embryonic state is more finished than that seascape."

Regardless, these painters kept painting, accepting the name Impressionist for themselves and Impressionism for their work.  This style of painting would go on to affect not only painting, but literature, photography, and film making. This avant garde painting style, and the artists who worked in it, were eventually embraced  widely by the public. Unfortunately, for many of them it would not be until after their death.

Don't let the word Impressionism fool you.  There are a wide variety of art forms that were born from this style of painting, making it more diverse and stylistic than at first glance. I dare say that all of modern art owes its existence to those crazy bohemians who embraced the term "Impressionism" and painted as they pleased, regardless of the consequences.

Thank you for reading this. We will learn more about these artist's lives in future blogs.

Those Crazy Bohemians (If you can't join 'em, beat 'em!)

The rise of Impressionism didn't happen easily. Paris was known as the capital of the art world, and the powers that be of that great city were not happy that a bunch of "misfit" artists had the gall to paint outside of the lines. The art schools and the people who sat on the committees for art shows in Paris had very strict rules.

Those rules dictated how one painted. They expected - no, demanded - that an artist followed those rules if they ever hoped to get in a public show. From how to apply paint on a canvas to subject matter and style, these people governed how art should be made. When the Impressionists began ignoring those rules it was not seen as a good thing.

In fact, these powerful people made sure they did everything to squash Impressionism from the start. No artist that painted in this style was allowed in any of the highly renowned public shows. This hurt the artists quite a bit. Without the public becoming aware of their work, how were they supposed to make a living?

No matter. These bohemian rebels started their own shows. Finally Napoleon II gave permission for a show of the misfits. This was known as a show for all of the artists who had been rejected entrance into the more prestigious shows. Not a very enticing advertisement! At first, not many came to their shows; and those who did came to laugh. The term Impressionism was originally a slam to the movement, a derogatory term.  The journalist and critic Louis Leroy looked at one of Monet's works and snorted "Impression!" and then went on to say, "Wallpaper in its embryonic state is more finished." Thanks to him, one of the greatest movements in the art world was given its name.

Impressionists were interested in landscapes and contemporary life, not religious, mythological or historical scenes. Capturing light and how the same scene changed during different periods of the day was an important part of their painting. Many of them also refused to try to make a painting look three dimensional.  Since the canvas was two dimensional and they were not trying to "trick" people into seeing their work as real, but as a painting, they painted the scenes flat.

Yes, a new movement in art was born, thanks to those misfits. Things would never again be the same in the art world. We will continue to look into the lives of those crazy bohemians in future blogs here.

Those Crazy Bohemians! (Why Montmartre?)

What made the artists of Paris leave the city and move to Montmartre in the nineteenth century? The first answer is the most common reason that artists are always on the move.

Napoleon III wanted Paris "beautified" and so he gave most of the prime land in the city to wealthy friends.  It was their responsibility to develop it. Develop it they did, and rents soared. The original inhabitants had no choice but to leave.

Montmartre was officially made part of Paris in the 1850's but the city did not develop it, and the village considered itself very much separate. It was free of Paris taxes and had a nunnery that made cheap red wine. Those alone were good reasons to move to Montmartre.  Add the facts that Montmartre sat at the top of a hill that overlooked the whole city of Paris, and there was an abundance of light (hard to find in the city) and you had the perfect location for painters to gather.

Johan Jongkind and Camille Pisarro were some of the first artists to inhabit the area in the mid-nineteenth century. It was not until toward the end of that century and the beginning of the twentieth that artists really began to flock there.

 Vincent van Gogh, Pierre Brissaud, Alfred Jarry, Gen Paul, Jacques Villon, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, Henri Matisse, André Derain, Suzanne Valadon, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Maurice Utrillo, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Théophile Steinlen, and African-American expatriates such as Langston Hughes worked in this village and found artistic inspiration there.

Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani, and other artists living in poverty worked in a commune, a building called Le Bateau-Lavoir, during the years 1904–1909. Composer Satie (who was a pianist at Le Chat Noir), also lived in the area.

The last of the bohemian Montmartre artists was Gen Paul. He was born in Montmartre and a friend of Utrillo. Paul's calligraphic expressionist lithographs, sometimes memorializing picturesque Montmartre itself, owe a debt to Raoul Dufy.

In fact, many of these artists painted scenes of the village. More and more artists flocked to the area in order to draw inspiration from each other. It must have been quite a scene, and one that I would have loved being part of.

Stay tuned for more information about the bohemian artists of Montmartre and Impressionism.

What a Character! (So Hard to Say Goodbye)

Continuing as an indie author, the third book in my Gastien Series has been started.  I have about 17,000 words done.  It is so hard to say goodbye to Gastien himself!  This third book is about another characeter in the series, and he is vastly different from Gastien.

I have lived with Gastien in my head and in my soul for over a year.  I think I know him better than I know Caddy Rowland.  Sometimes, he feels more real than I do.  All of a sudden, I have to let go.  Let go and move on.  It is so incredibly hard to do so!  It feels like my firstborn is being ripped from my arms.  Yet, unless I do, Tristan Michel will have no voice.  He won't become real and readers will feel that.

Tristan Michel is very, very different from Gastien.  I have to keep reminding myself of that as I write book 3.  What worries me is that readers won't remember that.  They love Gastien. They talk about Gastien as if he were alive today and a close friend of theirs.  His story was extremely emotional for them. Many who never cry found themselves in tears. Gastien was full of passion and wildness.  A nonconformist. 

How will they deal with a reserved man who values tradition and family values? Will they pan the book, saying that it lacks the excitement and emotional intensity of the first two?  I am scared. Damned scared.

If they just give Tristan Michel a chance, I think they will find that he wrestles his own demons and is a time bomb waiting to go off.  That his story, too, is full of emotion and pain.  He is different than Gastien, but no less driven; no less conflicted.

Tristan Michel is begging me to open my mind and allow him to speak.  His story, although different, is no less important.  He deserves my complete attention and so, although I hate to, this blog is a goodbye.

It is a goodbye to Gastien, that bohemian bad boy who broke readers hearts and made them laugh at the same time.  Yes, readers hated him at times.  They loved him even more.  Ah, Gastien.  How I enjoyed your story.  It was a pleasure allowing you to speak through me. How I love you! I will miss you, my amie.  I will miss you.

R.I.P. Gastien Beauchamp.