Vincent van Gogh
Project: The Life of Van Gogh
Maria Papaleonida,
Polyxeni Papapostolou,
Maritina Papadaki,
Giorgos Doulgerakis
Class A6
Vincent van Gogh
The Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, with his adventurous life and tragic end, is a legendary figure in the history of art. Classified by art critics within the Post-Impressionist movement, he exerted enormous influence on 20th-century art through his work. A constant value in the art market, his paintings now reach unattainable prices, even though during his lifetime he sold only one of them.
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh was born on March 30, 1853, in Zundert, in the southern Netherlands. The son of a pastor, he initially worked for an art dealership in The Hague, London, and Paris. He later became a teacher in England, a missionary to the miners of Borinage in Belgium, and finally, in 1880, a painter. He was largely self-taught, and only one of his artist cousins, the landscape painter Anton Mauve, taught him certain technical aspects of oil painting and watercolor.
Vincent van Gogh
In 1886 he left the Netherlands and settled in Paris, where he lived with his brother Theo, an art dealer and patron of artists such as Émile Bernard, Edgar Degas, Paul Gauguin, Georges Seurat, and Toulouse-Lautrec.
Impressed by the work and personalities of these painters, Van Gogh conceived the idea of a ‘Studio of the South’ in Arles, where the pioneering artists of the time would work together. In 1888, he indeed settled in Arles, but the only painter who was persuaded to follow him was Gauguin.
Vincent van Gogh
Later on, the painter started showing symptoms of depression and intense aggression. During a heated argument with Gauguin, he injured himself by cutting off part of his left ear. Many people claim that he didn't actually do it to himself, but that during a fight over a woman, Gauguin was the one who attacked his friend with a sword. Others believe that Van Gogh was so attached to the French impressionist that when Gauguin told him he was leaving Arles, Van Gogh collapsed, had a nervous breakdown, and cut off his earlobe with a razor. What happened next is even more interesting. They say that in his delirium, he showed up at a brothel covered in blood, with his earlobe wrapped in newspaper, and asked the women there to keep it safe for him.
Ladies of Arles (Memories of the Garden at Etten), Vincent van Gogh, 1888
Vincent van Gogh
Another version says that Van Gogh suffered from Meniere’s disease, an inner ear disorder that comes with nausea, dizziness, hearing loss, and mostly, intense tinnitus (ringing in the ears). So, there’s a chance the great painter cut off his ear in a moment of despair, trying to get rid of that ringing. In 1889, Van Gogh was admitted to a psychiatric clinic with severe signs of depression, epilepsy, and schizophrenia. His health got worse day by day, and from his doctors' letters to his brother, Theo van Gogh, we can see how much he must have suffered back then.
Despite being in such a bad state, he kept on painting even inside the clinic. It’s really interesting to see how his health affected his work. Xanthopsia is a condition where the patient sees everything around them tinted yellow. It has been recorded as a side effect of a drug called digitalis (a herbal medicine for epilepsy) but also as a result of drinking too much absinthe. Van Gogh never hid his love for the 'forbidden drink,' and it’s very likely he was prescribed digitalis for his seizures. The result? His trademark 'yellowish' style that made his art so unique and special.
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
On July 27, 1890, he was shot in the chest and died two days later. Even his death, however, remains an unsolved mystery to this day. In recent years, a theory has gained ground suggesting that Van Gogh was accidentally shot by two boys who were playing with a faulty gun. He never reported them to the authorities; on the contrary, he accepted his injury with gratitude, as the approaching death would free him from an unbearable life
However, it is more likely that he intended to end his own life and his suffering. When asked shortly before he died whether he had attempted suicide, he replied: ‘My body is mine and I am free to do with it whatever I wish.’ And when his doctor told him, just hours before he passed away, that he had been trying to save his life, Van Gogh responded: ‘Then I will have to do it again…’”
Vincent van Gogh
Πηγές:
https://smarthistory.org/van-gogh-the-starry-night/
https://www.sansimera.gr/biographies/2044
https://www.lifo.gr/culture/eikastika/kommeno-ayti-toy-ban-gkogk