Starry, Starry Night : Vincent van Gogh

"Now I understand what you tried to say to me, and how you suffered for your sanity, and how you tried to set them free. They would not listen they did not know how, perhaps they'll listen now." - Don McLean, Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)

In this blog post I am going to write about everything about Vincent van Gogh that I have learnt and read about that interests me. Although I know that it is more proper to refer to him as Van Gogh, I will be referring to him as Vincent.

Vincent van Gogh was born in the Netherlands on 30th March 1853 into an upper-middle class family. His father was a pastor and his mother was an artist and her love for nature, drawing and watercolours was transferred to Vincent as a child. Vincent was the eldest of six children and his brother Theo van Gogh supported him and his art. At the age of 15, Vincent's family was struggling financially and he had to leave school and start working at his uncle Cornelis' art dealership. By this time he was fluent in French, German, English and his native language, Dutch.

In June 1873, Vincent was transferred to the Groupil Gallery in London where he fell in love with English culture and became a fan of the works of Charles Dickens and George Eliot. He also fell in love with his landlady's daughter but when she rejected his marriage proposal, he suffered a breakdown. He threw away all his books except for the Bible and devoted himself to God. He was eventually fired from his job in 1876. Vincent then taught in a Methodist boys' school and also preached to the congregation. He wished to become a minster and prepared for the entrance exam to the School of Theology in Amsterdam, however he refused to take the Latin exam because he thought it was a dead language of poor people. He was denied entrance and the same thing happened at the Church of Belgium.

At the age of 27, Vincent decided to become an artist, although he had no formal art training his brother Theo offered him support financially. He began taking up lessons on his own, studying books like 'Travaux des champs' by Jean-Francois Millet and 'Cours de dessin' by Charles Bargue and teaching himself how to draw and paint. In 1881, Vincent moved back home with his parents. His early works were mostly still-lifes and depictions of peasant labourers and they contained few signs of the vivid colours which are seen in his later works.

In 1885, Impressionism was the trend in Paris, nevertheless Vincent decided to move to Paris in 1886. He met members of the avant-garde, including Paul Gaugin. In Paris, Vincent saw Impressionist art and was inspired by the colour and light and he began studying with Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Camille Pissarro and others. He became friend with Gaugin, Toulouse-Lautrec and Pissarro. He created a new approach to his style and his work became lighter and brighter. He painted a large number of self-portraits in this period. To save money, he and his friends posed for each other instead of hiring models. He argued with other painter about their works and alienated those who were vexed by this.

To enhance his art and life, Vincent began studying Eastern philosophy. He became influenced by Japanese art and he dreamed of going there, however he was told by Toulouse-Lautrec that the light in Arles was the same as in Japan. In Feburary 1888, Vincent moved to southern France and spent his money on paint rather than food. He often neglected his physical health, did not eat properly and drank heavily, he also suffered from delusions and psychotic episodes which made him worried about his mental stability. His style was fully realised during his stay in Arles, France in 1888.

During the 10 years Vincent van Gogh was an artist, he created around 43 self-portraits as both paintings and drawings. He wrote in a letter to his sister "I am looking for a deeper likeness than that obtained by a photographer,". Also during this time, he created over 2100 artworks, including 860 oil paintings and more than 1300 watercolours, drawings and sketches, most of which were created in the last two years for his life. These artworks include landscapes, still-lifes, portraits and self-potraits. They have dramatic and expressive brushwork.

Vincent van Gogh was a post-Impressionist painter ans his work influenced 20th century art because of its beauty, colour and emotion. Throughout his career he struggled with mental illness and remained poor and virtually unknown.