Paul Gachet

French physician most famous for treating the painter Vincent van Gogh during his last weeks in Auvers-sur-Oise (1828–1909)

The thesis titled Étude sur la Mélancolie, completed in 1858, marked a pivotal academic milestone for Paul-Ferdinand Gachet, a French physician whose career balanced clinical practice with an enduring commitment to the Impressionist movement. Born in Lille in 1828, he integrated his medical training from the universities of Montpellier and Paris with a private life deeply immersed in the contemporary art scene.

Medical Training and Early Practice

Gachet followed a traditional medical path, gaining his degree after studies at the Faculty of Medicine of Montpellier and the University of Paris. During his formative years, he gained clinical exposure at the mental hospitals of Bicêtre and Salpêtrière, where he studied under Armand Trousseau. By 1858, he had secured his credentials and moved to Paris to establish a private homeopathic practice. His work frequently intersected with his personal interests, and he famously advised Édouard Manet against the amputation of his leg, though the patient ultimately disregarded this counsel.

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Life in Auvers-sur-Oise

In 1872, Gachet acquired a residence in Auvers-sur-Oise, a village situated approximately 27 kilometres from Paris. This location became a nexus for artistic collaboration. Gachet provided space for Paul Cézanne to establish a studio in his attic and cultivated friendships with figures such as Camille Pissarro, Armand Guillaumin, and Victor Vignon. His professional life remained diverse; he worked as a physician while continuing to act as an art critic under the pseudonym Blanche de Mézin. He also maintained social and professional ties to figures like Victor Hugo, Champfleury, and chemist Henri Nestlé.

Supervision of Vincent van Gogh

Following Vincent van Gogh’s discharge from an asylum on 16 May 1890, Theo van Gogh selected Gachet to supervise his brother’s recovery due to the physician's documented sensitivity toward painters. Their relationship was complex. While Vincent initially questioned the doctor’s stability, describing him as equally unwell, the two eventually developed a mutual rapport. Following Vincent's death, Gachet faced historical scrutiny regarding his treatment methods. However, biographer Wilfred Arnold has noted that the care provided by Gachet and other contemporaries was generally consistent with the medical limitations of the era regarding unrecognized psychiatric conditions.

Artistic Legacy and Death

Gachet was an amateur painter who produced works signed under the name Paul van Ryssel, a reference to the Dutch name for his birthplace, Lille. He remained a dedicated collector of works by Manet and Gustave Courbet throughout his life. After a career defined by his dual roles as a medical practitioner and patron of the arts, Gachet died on 9 January 1909. He was buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, where his grave remains in section 52.