Paul Gauguin held a paint brush for the first time probably at age 23, in 1871. He was then working successfully in a stock brokerage firm in Paris. There was nothing unusual about Gauguin at the time—nor for the following 12 years.

He studied with a professional artist in 1872; married in 1873; had a painting accepted by the prestigious annual government sponsored exhibition of contemporary art, the Salon, in 1876; exhibited with the Impressionists in 1879; and, changed jobs twice, 1879 and 1880, working productively in banking and insurance.