Who is Vincent van Gogh?

Vincent Willem van Gogh (30 March 1853 – 29 July 1890) was a Dutch post-impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, including around 860 oil paintings, most of which date from the last two years of his life. They include landscapes, still lifes, portraits and self-portraits, and are characterised by bold colours and dramatic, impulsive and expressive brushwork that contributed to the foundations of modern art. He was not commercially successful, and his suicide at 37 came after years of mental illness, depression and poverty.

 

 

 

 

          Which of Van Gogh's paintings do I like the most?

1. Starry Night

 

Starry Night is widely known as Van Gogh's most famous painting. It is a great example of how Van Gogh uses light. He contrasts the bright stars with the dark town below.

This is an icon of the Post-Impressionist style. It represents the night view from the window of the sanatorium in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence where the artist stayed during the last stage of his life. Van Gogh painted the work during the day and also used it to channel his state of mind after one of his schizophrenia attacks a little more than a year before he committed suicide.

 

2. Sunflowers

 

Sunflowers is one of Van Gogh’s most representative works. It’s not in vain that you have seen it reproduced in countless media: plates, posters, stationery, etc. “The Sunflowers”, belonging to a series of paintings on the same subject, arose after the painter collected them from a field in Provence and painted them as they withered. It is said that the characteristic yellow tone of the petals was achieved after the caffeine addict suffered visual hallucinations caused by coffee consumption. Van Gogh was a true caffeine addict!

 

3. The Bedroom

 

The Bedroom is a painting of Van Gogh's real life bedroom. It is a very personal painting in which his own art is hung on the walls. The colors are specifically chosen to create a feeling of rest and sleep.

During his time in Arles, Van Gogh stayed in this room that he painted. With it, the artist wanted to represent the simplicity and tranquility of his bedroom through a palette of pale colors, which are also a tribute to the sobriety of Japan, whose artwork inspired Van Gogh. It is said that because of his epilepsy, he saw the distorted colors, which would explain the abundance of yellows and greens in this work. It is also said that Van Gogh painted this under the influence of a plant called digitalis purpurea that helped him maintain his pulse.

                        Other van Gogh's iconic paintings