Who is Vincent van Gogh. Van Gogh: biography, interesting facts, creativity

­ Brief biography of Vincent van Gogh

Vincent Willem Van Gogh - Dutch artist and schedule; the largest representative of post-impressionism. Born on March 30, 1853 in the small Dutch village of Grote-Zundert, located near the Belgian border. The future artist's father was a Protestant pastor, and his mother was the daughter of a bookseller. Vincent was the second child in a large family, but since his older brother died in infancy, he remained as the eldest.

Already at the age of 16, he worked at a company selling paintings. Although he was not an excellent businessman, he had a boundless love for painting. The artist's life changed dramatically during the two years spent in London. His work was so well paid that he could not deny himself anything. During this period, Vincent actively attended exhibitions in art galleries. Love got in the way of a glorious career. A young art dealer fell madly in love with a woman who was already engaged, and then withdrew into himself.

He became indifferent to his work, and upon returning to Holland, he became involved in religion. From 1886 he lived with his brother in Paris. There he studied painting with F. Cormon, and also met Pissarro, Gauguin and others outstanding artists. He draws with bright and clear sketches in the impressionist style. By the age of 27, he already knew exactly what he wanted to be professional artist. By nature, Van Gogh was very kind and compassionate. He was able to give money and clothes to needy people, even when he himself was not particularly well off.

Life was slowly getting better, but another personal crisis followed. The widowed cousin, whom he had liked for a long time, refused him, which he took very seriously. This disagreement was the reason for his move to The Hague. In 1888, he moved to Arles, since France had long become his second home. Locals they avoided him, considering him abnormal. Despite this, he made new acquaintances there and acquired many good friends. For some time they communicated closely with Gauguin, but after a serious quarrel he almost killed him by attacking him with a razor. During the same period, he cut off his ear, after which he was placed in a psychiatric clinic.

Van Gogh's madness was already known. The treatment did not give the desired result, as the artist was tormented by hallucinations. In 1890, he went to see his brother Theo, who had just given birth to a son, named Vincent after him. The disease seemed to have subsided and life began to get better again. However, in July of the same year, Van Gogh committed suicide. He died by shooting himself in the chest with a pistol. IN last minutes During his life, his brother Theo, who loved him dearly, was next to him.

Vincent van Gogh was a Dutch post-impressionist artist who had a huge influence on 20th century painting. Today his works are valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.

During his life, he never received recognition in society, and became known only after committing suicide at the age of 37.

Less than 2 years later, Vincent van Gogh decided to quit educational institution and go back home. He himself called his childhood “gloomy, cold and empty,” which undoubtedly affected his subsequent biography.

Creative biography

At the age of 15, Vincent began working at the reputable art and trading company Goupil & Cie, owned by his uncle.

Speaking modern language, he performed the work of a dealer, in which he achieved success. He was well versed in painting and often visited various galleries.

However, working for the company does not bring Van Gogh joy. Having fallen into deep depression, he writes several letters to his brother Theodorus, in which he talks about his loneliness and helplessness.

Some biographers believe that Vincent suffered from unrequited love, but there is no reliable information on this matter.

Eventually, Van Gogh was fired from Goupil & Cie.

Missionary activities

In 1877, an important event occurred in Van Gogh’s biography: he decided to enter the university to study theology. To do this, he moves to Amsterdam to live with his uncle Johannes.

After he successfully passes his exams and becomes a university student, Vincent becomes disillusioned with his studies. Realizing his mistake, he gives up everything and begins to engage in missionary work.

Van Gogh lights up with a new idea: he preaches the Gospel to the poor, teaches children, and also teaches the Law of God in the Borinage, where miners and their families mainly lived.

To provide himself with the bare necessities, Vincent draws maps of Palestine at night. In general, it must be said that in Van Gogh’s biography there are many examples of almost painful selflessness.

Gradually the missionary gained respect among the people, as a result of which he was given a salary of 50 francs.

During this period of his biography, Vincent led a very modest lifestyle and repeatedly defended the rights of workers.

He soon began to irritate officials, so he was removed from his post as a preacher. This turn of events was a real blow for Van Gogh.

The Making of the Artist Van Gogh

Being depressed, Vincent van Gogh begins to paint. For some time he even attended the Academy of Fine Arts, however, not seeing any benefit for himself, he left it.

After that, he continued to paint, relying only on his own experience.

During this period of his biography, Van Gogh falls in love with his cousin, but she does not reciprocate his feelings. As a result of this, he broken hearted leaves for The Hague, where he continues to paint.

There Van Gogh learns drawing from Anton Mauve, and in free time takes walks through the poor neighborhoods of the city. In the future, the artist will be able to capture everything he sees in his masterpieces.

Watching the technology different masters, Van Gogh begins to experiment with shades and styles of painting. However, he continues to be tormented by endless thoughts about starting a family.

One day he met a woman who had several children, and soon invited her to move into his home. Then he felt real happiness, which, however, did not last long.

The hot temper and difficult temper of his partner made Van Gogh’s life unbearable. As a result, he broke up with this woman and went north. His home was a hut in which he lived and painted landscapes.

After some time, the artist returns home and continues to paint. On his canvases he often depicts ordinary people and cityscapes.

Parisian period

In 1886, in the biography of Van Gogh again big changes: he decides to leave for. Then many artists appeared in this city with a new vision of art. There he met his brother Theo, who was already the director of the gallery.

Soon Van Gogh visited several exhibitions of the Impressionists, who sought to capture the world in its dynamics. During this period, Vincent was supported by his brother, who took care of him in every possible way and introduced him to various artists.

After receiving new sensations, Van Gogh’s biography experienced a creative upswing. In Paris, he manages to paint about 230 paintings, in which he experiments with technique and paint. As a result, his canvases become lighter and brighter.

While walking around Paris, Van Gogh met the owner of a cafe, Agostina Segatori. Soon he paints a portrait of her.

Then Vincent begins to sell his works along with other little-known artists.

He often gets into arguments with his colleagues, criticizing their work. Realizing that no one is interested in his work, he decides to leave Paris.

Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin

In February 1888, Vincent van Gogh moved to Provence, where he fell in love at first sight. He receives 250 francs a month from his brother, thanks to which he can rent a hotel room and eat well.

During this period of his biography, Van Gogh often worked on the street, depicting night landscapes on his canvases. This is exactly how it was written famous painting « Starlight Night over the Rhone."

After some time, Van Gogh managed to meet Paul Gauguin, whose work he was delighted with. They even begin to live together, constantly talking about the great meaning.

However, soon misunderstandings appear in their relationship, which often end in quarrels.

Van Gogh cuts off his ear

On the evening of December 23, 1888, perhaps the most famous event in the artist’s biography occurs: he cuts off his ear. The actions unfolded as follows.

After another quarrel with Paul Gauguin, Van Gogh attacked his friend with a razor in his hands. Gauguin accidentally managed to stop Vincent.

The whole truth about this quarrel and the circumstances of the attack is still unknown, but that same night Van Gogh cut off his earlobe, wrapped it in paper and sent it to the prostitute Rachel.

According to the generally accepted version, this was done in a fit of repentance, but some researchers believe that it was not repentance, but a manifestation of madness caused by frequent consumption of absinthe (a drink containing 70% alcohol).

The next day, December 24, Van Gogh was taken to the Saint-Rémy psychiatric hospital, where the attack repeated with such force that the doctors placed him in a ward for violent patients.

Gauguin hastily left the city, without visiting Van Gogh in the hospital, but informing his brother Theo about what had happened.

Personal life

A number of Van Gogh biographers believe that the causes of Van Gogh’s mental illness could have been difficult relationships with women. He proposed repeatedly different girls, however, he constantly received refusals.

There was a case when he promised to hold his palm over the candle flame until the girl agreed to become his wife.

With his action, he shocked his chosen one, and also angered her father, who, without hesitation, threw the artist out of the house.

Van Gogh's sexual dissatisfaction seriously affected his psyche and led him to start liking ugly, mature prostitutes. He began to live with one of them in his house, accepting her along with his five-year-old daughter.

After living like this for about a year, Vincent van Gogh painted several paintings with his lover. An interesting fact is that because of her, the artist was forced to undergo treatment for gonorrhea.

However, then more and more quarrels began to occur between them, which ultimately led to separation.

After this, Van Gogh was a frequent guest of brothels, as a result of which he was treated for various sexually transmitted diseases.

Death

While in the hospital, Van Gogh was able to continue painting. This is how they appeared famous paintings"Starry Night" and "Road with Cypresses and a Star".

It is worth noting that his health was very variable. While feeling well, he could suddenly become depressed. One day, during one of his fits, Vincent ate his paints.

Theo still tried to support his brother. In 1890, he put up for sale his painting “Red Vineyards in Arles,” which was subsequently purchased for 400 francs.

When Vincent van Gogh found out about this, his joy knew no bounds. An interesting fact is that this was the only painting sold during the artist’s lifetime.

In the next period of his biography, Van Gogh still continues to eat paint, so his brother arranges for his treatment at Dr. Gachet’s clinic. It is worth noting that a good and even friendly relationship developed between the patient and the doctor.

Literally a month later, the treatment yielded results, as a result of which Gachet allowed Vincent to go to visit his brother.

However, having met Theo, Van Gogh did not feel the attention due to his person, since at that time Theo was having financial difficulties and his daughter was seriously ill.

The offended and offended artist returns to the hospital.

On July 27, 1890, Vincent Van Gogh shot himself in the chest with a revolver, and, as if nothing had happened, lay down in bed, lighting his pipe. It seemed that the wound did not cause him any pain.

Gachet immediately informed his brother about the crossbow, and Theo arrived immediately. Wanting to reassure Vincent, Theo said that he would definitely recover, to which Van Gogh said the phrase: “Sadness will last forever.”

2 days later, on July 29, 1890, Vincent van Gogh died at the age of 37. He was buried in small town Mary.

It is interesting that six months later Van Gogh’s brother Theodorus himself passed away.

Photo by Van Gogh

At the end you can see several photos of Van Gogh's portraits. All of them were made by him, that is, they are self-portraits.

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Vincent Van Gogh - famous artist and a scandalous figure in the world art of the 19th century V. Today, his work continues to generate controversy. The ambiguity of the paintings and their fullness of meaning force us to take a deeper look at both them and the life of their creator.

Childhood and family

He was born in 1853 in the Netherlands, in the small village of Grote-Zundert. His father was a Protestant pastor, and his mother was from a bookbinder family. Vincent Van Gogh had 2 younger brothers and 3 sisters. It is known that at home he was often punished for his wayward character and temper.

The men in the artist’s family worked in the church or were engaged in selling paintings and books. From childhood he was immersed in 2 contradictory world– the world of faith and the world of art.

Education

At the age of 7, the elder Van Gogh began attending the village school. Just a year later he switched to home schooling, and after another 3 years he left for boarding school. In 1866 Vincent became a student at Willem II College. Although leaving and separation from loved ones was not easy for him, he achieved some success in his studies. Here he received drawing lessons. After 2 years, Vincent Van Gogh interrupted his primary education and returned home.

Subsequently, he made repeated attempts to obtain art education, but none of them were successful.

Finding yourself

From 1869 to 1876, working as a painting salesman in a large company, he lived in The Hague, Paris and London. During these years, he became acquainted with painting very closely, visited galleries, had daily contact with works of art and their authors, and for the first time tried himself as an artist.

After his dismissal he worked at 2 English schools as a teacher and assistant pastor. Then he returned to the Netherlands and sold books. But most of his time was spent on drawings and translating fragments of the Bible into foreign languages.

Six months later, having settled in Amsterdam with his uncle Jan Van Gogh, he was preparing to enter the university to study theology. However, he quickly changed his mind and went first to the Protestant missionary school near Brussels, and then to the mining village of Paturage in Belgium.

Since the mid-80s of the XIX century. and until the end of his life, Vincent Van Gogh actively painted and even sold some paintings.

He spent some time in 1888 in a psychiatric hospital with a diagnosis of temporal lobe epilepsy. The incident with cutting off his earlobe is well known, because of which he ended up in the hospital - Van Gogh, after a quarrel with Gauguin, separated it from his left ear and took it to a prostitute he knew.

The artist died in 1890 from a bullet wound. According to some versions, the shot was fired by himself.

Van Gogh short biography.

These days, few people do not know about the great artist Vincent Van Gogh. Van Gogh's biography was destined to be not too long, but eventful and full of hardships, brief ups and desperate downs. Few people know that in his entire life, Vincent managed to sell only one of his paintings for a significant amount, and only after his death did contemporaries recognize the enormous influence of the Dutch post-impressionist on 20th-century painting. Van Gogh's biography can be briefly summarized in the dying words of the great master:

The sadness will never end.

Unfortunately, the life of this amazing and original creator was full of pain and disappointment. But who knows, maybe if it weren’t for all the losses in life, the world would never have seen his amazing works, which people still admire?

Childhood

A brief biography and work of Vincent Van Gogh was restored through the efforts of his brother Theo. Vincent had almost no friends, so everything we now know about the great artist was told by a man who loved him immensely.

Vincent Willem van Gogh was born on March 30, 1853 in North Brabant in the village of Grote-Zundert. The firstborn of Theodore and Anna Cornelia Van Gogh died in infancy - Vincent became the eldest child in the family. Four years after Vincent was born, his brother Theodorus was born, with whom Vincent was close until the end of his life. In addition, they also had a brother, Cornelius, and three sisters (Anna, Elizabeth and Willemina).

An interesting fact in Van Gogh’s biography is that he grew up as a difficult and stubborn child with extravagant manners. At the same time, outside the family, Vincent was serious, soft, thoughtful and calm. He did not like to communicate with other children, but his fellow villagers considered him a modest and friendly child.

In 1864 he was sent to a boarding school in Zevenbergen. The artist Van Gogh recalled this part of his biography with pain: his departure caused him a lot of suffering. This place doomed him to loneliness, so Vincent began studying, but already in 1868 he left his studies and returned home. In fact, this is all the formal education that the artist managed to receive.

A brief biography and work of Van Gogh is still carefully preserved in museums and a few testimonies: no one could have imagined that the enfant terrible would become a truly great creator - even if his importance was recognized only after his death.

Work and missionary activity

A year after returning home, Vincent goes to work at the Hague branch of his uncle's art and trading company. In 1873, Vincent was transferred to London. Over time, Vincent learned to appreciate and understand painting. He later moved to 87 Hackford Road, where he rented a room from Ursula Loyer and her daughter Eugenie. Some biographers add that Van Gogh was in love with Eugenie, although the facts suggest that he loved the German Carlina Haanebeek.

In 1874, Vincent was already working in the Paris branch, but he soon returned to London. Things are getting worse for him: a year later he is again transferred to Paris, visits art museums and exhibitions, and finally plucks up the courage to try his hand at painting. Vincent cools down to work, fired up by a new business. All this leads to the fact that in 1876 he was fired from the company for poor work.

Then there comes a moment in the biography of Vincent van Gogh when he returns to London again and teaches at a boarding school in Ramsgate. During the same period of his life, Vincent devoted a lot of time to religion; he developed a desire to become a pastor, following in the footsteps of his father. A little later, Van Gogh moved to another school in Isleworth, where he began working as a teacher and assistant pastor. Vincent preached his first sermon there. His interest in writing grew, and he became inspired to preach to the poor.

At Christmas, Vincent went home, where he was begged not to go back to England. So he stayed in the Netherlands to help in a bookshop in Dordrecht. But this work did not inspire him: he mainly occupied himself with sketches and translations of the Bible.

His parents supported Van Gogh's desire to become a priest, sending him to Amsterdam in 1877. There he settles with his uncle Jan Van Gogh. Vincent studied hard under the supervision of Yoganess Stricker, a famous theologian, preparing for exams for admission to the theology department. But very soon he quits his studies and leaves Amsterdam.

The desire to find his place in the world led him to the Protestant Missionary School of Pastor Bokma in Laeken near Brussels, where he took a course in preaching. There is also an opinion that Vincent did not graduate full course, because he was driven away due to his unkempt appearance, hot temper and fits of anger.

In 1878, Vincent became a missionary for six months in the village of Paturage in Borinage. Here he visited the sick, read the Scriptures for those who could not read, taught children, and spent his nights drawing maps of Palestine, earning his living. Van Gogh planned to enroll in an Evangelical school, but he considered paying for tuition discriminatory and abandoned the idea. Soon he was removed from the rank of preacher - this was a painful blow for the future artist, but also an important fact in Van Gogh’s biography. Who knows, perhaps, if not for this high-profile event, Vincent would have become a priest, and the world would never have known talented artist.

Becoming an artist

Studying the short biography of Vincent Van Gogh, we can conclude: fate seemed to push him all his life in the right direction and led him to painting. Seeking salvation from despondency, Vincent again turns to painting. He turns to his brother Theo for support and in 1880 goes to Brussels, where he attends classes at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. A year later, Vincent is forced to leave his studies again and return to his family. It was then that he decided that an artist does not need any talent, the main thing is to work hard and tirelessly. Therefore, he continues painting and drawing on his own.

During this period, Vincent experiences a new love, this time for his cousin, the widow Kay Vos-Stricker, who was visiting the Van Goghs' house. But she did not reciprocate, but Vincent continued to look after her, which caused the indignation of her relatives. Eventually he was told to leave. Van Gogh experiences another shock and abandons attempts to improve his further personal life.

Vincent leaves for The Hague, where he takes lessons from Anton Mauve. Over time, the biography and work of Vincent van Gogh was filled with new colors, including in painting: he experimented with mixing different techniques. Then such works of his as “Backyards” were born, which he created with chalk, pen and brush, as well as the painting “Roofs. View from Van Gogh's studio", painted in watercolor and chalk. The development of his work was greatly influenced by Charles Bargue’s book “A Course in Drawing,” lithographs from which he diligently copied.

Vincent was a man of fine spiritual organization, and, one way or another, was drawn to people and emotional return. Despite his decision to forget about personal life, in The Hague he again attempted to start a family. He met Christine right on the street and was so imbued with her plight that he invited her to live in his house with the children. This act finally broke Vincent’s relationship with all his loved ones, but they maintained a warm relationship with Theo. This is how Vincent got a girlfriend and a model. But Christine turned out to have a nightmare character: Van Gogh’s life turned into a nightmare.

When they parted, the artist went north to the province of Drenthe. He equipped his home as a workshop, and spent whole days outdoors, creating landscapes. But the artist did not call himself a landscape painter, dedicating his paintings to peasants and their everyday life.

Van Gogh's early works are classified as realism, but his technique does not quite fit into this direction. One of the problems that Van Gogh faced in his work was the inability to correctly depict the human figure. But this only played into the hands of the great artist: it became characteristic feature his manners: interpretation of man as an integral part of the surrounding world. This can be clearly seen, for example, in the work “A Peasant and a Peasant Woman Planting Potatoes.” Human figures are like mountains in the distance, and the elevated horizon seems to press on them from above, preventing them from straightening their backs. A similar technique can be seen in his more late work"Red Vineyards"

During this period of his biography, Van Gogh writes a series of works, including:

• "Leaving the Protestant Church in Nuenen";
• "Potato Eaters";
• "Peasant Woman";
• "Old church tower in Nuenen."

The paintings are created in dark shades, which symbolize the author’s painful perception of human suffering and a feeling of general depression. Van Gogh depicted the heavy atmosphere of hopelessness of the peasants and the sad mood of the village. At the same time, Vincent formed his own understanding of landscapes: in his opinion, landscape expresses state of mind human through the connection between human psychology and nature.

Parisian period

Artistic life The French capital is thriving: it was there that the great artists of the time flocked. A landmark event was the exhibition of impressionists on rue Lafitte: for the first time, works by Signac and Seurat, who heralded the beginning of the post-impressionism movement, were shown. It was impressionism that revolutionized art, changing the approach to painting. This movement presented a confrontation with academicism and outdated subjects: at the head of creativity are pure colors and the very impression of what he saw, which are subsequently transferred to the canvas. Post-Impressionism was the final stage of Impressionism.

The Parisian period, lasting from 1986 to 1988, became the most fruitful in the artist’s life; his collection of paintings was replenished with more than 230 drawings and canvases. Vincent van Gogh forms own view on art: the realistic approach is becoming a thing of the past, replaced by a desire for post-impressionism.

With his acquaintance with Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Claude Monet, the colors in his paintings begin to lighten and become brighter and brighter, eventually becoming a real riot of color, characteristic of his last works.

An iconic place was Papa Tanga's shop, where they sold art materials. Here many artists met and exhibited their works. But Van Gogh’s temper was still irreconcilable: the spirit of competition and tension in society often drove the impulsive artist crazy, so that Vincent soon quarreled with his friends and decided to leave the French capital.

Among famous works the following paintings from the Parisian period:

• “Agostina Segatori at the Tambourine Cafe”;
• "Papa Tanguy"
• "Still Life with Absinthe";
• "Bridge over the Seine";
• "View of Paris from Theo's apartment on Rue Lepic."

Provence

Vincent goes to Provence and is imbued with this atmosphere for the rest of his life. Theo supports his brother's decision to become a real artist and sends him money to live on, and he, in gratitude, sends him his paintings in the hope that his brother will be able to sell them profitably. Van Gogh checks into a hotel where he lives and works, periodically inviting random visitors or acquaintances to pose.

When spring comes, Vincent goes outside and draws blooming trees and reviving nature. The ideas of impressionism gradually leave his work, but remain in the form of a light palette and pure colors. During this period of his work, Vincent wrote “The Peach Tree in Bloom” and “Anglois Bridge in Arles”.

Van Gogh even worked at night, once inspired by the idea of ​​capturing the special night colors and glow of the stars. It works by candlelight: this is how the famous “Starry Night over the Rhone” and “Night Cafe” were created.

Severed ear

Vincent comes up with the idea of ​​​​creating a common house for the artist, where creators could create their masterpieces while living and working together. An important event marks the arrival of Paul Gauguin, with whom Vincent had a long correspondence. Together with Gauguin, Vincent writes works filled with passion:

• "Yellow House";
• "Harvest. La Croe Valley";
• "Gauguin's Chair".

Vincent was overjoyed, but this union ends in a loud quarrel. Passions were heating up, and in one of his desperate moments, Van Gogh, according to some accounts, attacks a friend with a razor in his hands. Gauguin manages to stop Vincent, and he ends up cutting off his earlobe. Gauguin leaves his house, while he wrapped the bloody flesh in a napkin and handed it to a prostitute he knew, Rachelle. His friend Roulin found him in a pool of his own blood. Although the wound soon healed, the deep scar on his heart affected Vincent’s mental health for the rest of his life. Vincent soon finds himself in a psychiatric hospital.

Creativity flourishes

During periods of remission, he asked to return to the studio, but the residents of Arles signed a statement to the mayor asking him to isolate the mentally ill artist from civilians. But the hospital did not forbid him to create: until 1889, Vincent worked on new paintings right there. During this time, he created more than 100 drawings in pencil and watercolor. The canvases of this period are distinguished by tension, bright dynamics and juxtaposition of contrasting colors:

• "Landscape with Olives";
• "Wheat field with cypress trees."

At the end of the same year, Vincent was invited to participate in the G20 exhibition in Brussels. His works aroused great interest among art connoisseurs, but this could no longer please the artist, and even a laudatory article about the “Red Vineyards in Arles” did not make the exhausted Van Gogh happy.

In 1890 he moved to Opera-sur-Ourz, near Paris, where for the first time for a long time saw my family. He continued to write, but his style became increasingly gloomy and depressing. Distinctive feature of that period became a curved and hysterical contour, which can be seen in the following works:

• "Street and stairs in Auvers";
• "Rural road with cypress trees";
• "Landscape in Auvers after the rain."

Last years

The last bright memory in the life of the great artist was meeting Dr. Paul Gachet, who also loved to write. Friendship with him supported Vincent during the most difficult periods of his life - besides his brother, the postman Roulin and Doctor Gachet, by the end of his life he had no close friends left.

In 1890, Vincent painted the canvas “Wheat Field with Crows,” and a week later a tragedy occurred.

The circumstances of the artist's death look mysterious. Vincent died from a shot in the heart from his own revolver, which he carried with him to scare away birds. Dying, the artist admitted that he shot himself in the chest, but missed, hitting a little lower. He himself got to the hotel where he lived, and they called a doctor for him. The doctor was skeptical about the suicide attempt version - the angle of entry of the bullet was suspiciously low, and the bullet did not go through, which suggests that it was as if they were shooting from afar - or at least from a distance of a couple of meters. The doctor immediately called Theo - he arrived the next day and was with his brother until his death.

There is a version that on the eve of Van Gogh’s death, the artist had a serious quarrel with Dr. Gachet. He accused him of insolvency, while his brother Theo is literally dying from a disease that is eating him up, but still sends him money to live on. These words could have greatly hurt Vincent - after all, he himself felt enormous guilt before his brother. Moreover, in last years Vincent had feelings for the lady, which again did not lead to reciprocity. Being as depressed as possible, upset by a quarrel with a friend, and having recently left the hospital, Vincent could well have decided to commit suicide.

Vincent died on July 30, 1890. Theo loved his brother endlessly and experienced this loss with great difficulty. He began organizing an exhibition of Vincent's posthumous works, but less than a year later he died of severe nervous shock on January 25, 1891. Years later, Theo's widow reburied his remains next to Vincent: she believed that inseparable brothers should be close to each other at least after death.

Confession

There is a widespread misconception that during his lifetime Van Gogh was able to sell only one of his paintings - “Red Vineyards in Arles”. This work was only the first to be sold for a large amount- about 400 francs. However, there are documents indicating the sale of 14 more paintings.

Vincent Van Gogh received truly wide recognition only after his death. His commemorative exhibitions were organized in Paris, The Hague, Antwerp, and Brussels. Interest in the artist began to grow, and at the beginning of the 20th century, retrospectives began in Amsterdam, Paris, New York, Cologne and Berlin. People began to be interested in his work, and his work began to influence the younger generation of artists.

Gradually, prices for the artist's paintings began to increase until they became one of the most expensive paintings ever sold in the world, along with works by Pablo Picasso. Among his most expensive works:

• "Portrait of Doctor Gachet";
• "Irises";
• “Portrait of the Postman Joseph Roulin”;
• “Wheat field with cypress trees”;
• "A plowed field and a plowman."

Influence

IN last letter to Theo Vincent wrote that, not having his own children, the artist perceived the paintings as his continuation. To some extent this was true: he did have children, and the first of them was Expressionism, which later began to have many heirs.

Many artists subsequently adapted the features of Van Gogh’s style to their own work: Howard Hodgkin, Willem de Koening, Jackson Pollock. Fauvism soon came, which expanded the scope of color, and expressionism became widespread.

The biography of Van Gogh and his work gave the expressionists new language, which helped creators to delve deeper into the essence of things and the world around them. Vincent became, in a sense, a pioneer in modern art, trodden a new path in visual art.

It is almost impossible to tell Van Gogh’s biography briefly: his work during his unfortunately short life was influenced by so many different events that to omit at least one of them would be a terrible injustice. Heavy life path brought Vincent to the pinnacle of fame, but posthumous fame. During life great painter did not know either about his own genius, or about the enormous legacy that he left to the world of art, or about how his family and friends missed him in the future. Vincent spent a lonely and sad life, rejected by everyone. He found salvation in art, but was never able to escape. But, one way or another, he gave the world many amazing works that warm people’s hearts to this day, so many years later.

Vincent Van Gogh. Biography. Life and art

We do not know who Vincent Van Gogh was in past life... In this life, he was born just a boy on March 30, 1853 in the village of Groot Zunder in the province of North Brabant near the southern border of Holland. At baptism, he was given the name Vincent Willem in honor of his grandfather, and the prefix Gog, perhaps, comes from the name of the small town of Gog, which stood near a dense forest next to the border...
His father, Theodore Van Gogh, was a priest, and besides Vincent, there were five more children in the family, but only one of them was of great importance to him - his younger brother Theo, whose life was intertwined with Vincent's in a confusing and tragic way.

The fact that in the case of Vincent, fate chose the factor of surprise, making the author extremely famous and revered, while unknown and despised during his lifetime, begins to manifest itself, it seems, already in the events of 1890, decisive for the unfortunate artist, which ended tragically for him in July. And this year began with the best omens, with that first, only and unexpected sale of his painting “Red Vineyards in Arles.”
The January issue of Mercure de France magazine featured the first enthusiastic critical article about his work signed by Albert Aurier. In May, he moved from the Saint-Rémy-de-Provence psychiatric hospital to the town of Auvers-on-Oise, near Paris. There he met Dr. Gachet (an amateur artist, a friend of the Impressionists), who highly appreciated him. There he painted almost eighty canvases in just over two months. In addition, signs of an extraordinary destiny, something destined from above, appear from birth. By a strange coincidence, Vincent was born on March 30, 1853, exactly one year after the first-born of Theodorus Van Gogh and Anna Cornelius Carbenthus, who received the same name at baptism, was stillborn. The first Vincent's grave was located next to the church door through which the second Vincent passed every Sunday of his childhood.
This must not have been very pleasant, in addition, in the Van Gogh family papers there is a direct indication that the name of the stillborn predecessor was often mentioned in the presence of Vincent. But whether this had any effect on his "feeling of guilt" or his supposed feeling of being an "illegal usurper" by some is anyone's guess.
Following tradition, generations of Van Goghs chose two areas of activity for themselves: the church (Theodorus himself was the son of a pastor) and the art trade (like his father’s three brothers). Vincent will follow both the first and second paths, but will fail in both cases. However, both accumulated experiences will have a great influence on his future choice.

The first attempt to find his place in life dates back to 1869, when, at the age of sixteen, Vincent went to work - with the help of his namesake uncle (he is affectionately called Uncle Saint) - in the branch of the Parisian art company Goupil, which opened in The Hague . Here the future artist first comes into contact with painting and drawing and enriches the experience he receives at work with educational visits to city museums and copious reading. Everything goes quite well until 1873.
First of all, this is the year of his transfer to the London branch of Goupil, which had a negative impact on his future work. Van Gogh stayed there for two years and experienced a painful loneliness, which comes through in his letters to his brother, more and more sad. But the worst comes when Vincent, having exchanged the apartment that has become too expensive for a boarding house, which is maintained by the widow Loyer, falls in love with her daughter Ursula (according to other sources - Eugenia) and is rejected. This is the first acute love disappointment, this is the first of those impossible relationships that will constantly darken his feelings.
During that period of deep despair, a mystical understanding of reality begins to mature in him, developing into downright religious frenzy. His impulse grows stronger, displacing his interest in working at Gupil. And the transfer in May 1875 to the central office in Paris, supported by Uncle Saint in the hope that such a change would benefit him, would no longer help. On April 1, 1876, Vincent was finally fired from the Parisian art company, which by that time had passed to his partners Busso and Valadon.

More and more firmly convinced of his religious vocation, in the spring of 1877 Van Gogh moved to Amsterdam to live with his uncle Johannes, the director of the city shipyard, in order to prepare for the entrance exams to the Faculty of Theology. For him, who read with delight “On the Imitation of Christ,” becoming a servant of the Lord meant, first of all, devoting himself to specific service to his neighbor, in full accordance with the tenets of the Gospel. And great was his joy when, in 1879, he managed to obtain a position as a secular preacher in Wham, a mining center in the Borinage in southern Belgium.
Here he teaches the miners the Law of God and selflessly helps them, voluntarily dooming himself to a miserable existence: living in a shack, sleeping on the floor, eating only bread and water, subjecting himself to bodily torture. However, local authorities do not like such extremes, and they deny him this position. But Vincent stubbornly continues his mission as a Christian preacher in the nearby village of Kem. Now he doesn’t even have such an outlet as correspondence with his brother Theo, which is interrupted from October 1879 to July 1880.
Then gradually something changes in him, and his attention turns to painting. This new path is not as unexpected as it might seem. Firstly, making art was no less common for Vincent than reading. Work at the Goupil gallery could not help but influence the honing of his taste, and during his stay in various cities (The Hague, London, Paris, Amsterdam) he never missed the opportunity to visit museums.
But first of all, it was his deep religiosity, his compassion for the outcast, his love for people and for the Lord that are embodied through artistic creativity. “One must understand the defining word contained in the masterpieces of the great masters,” he writes to Theo in July 1880, “and God will be there.”

In 1880, Vincent entered the Academy of Arts in Brussels. However, due to his irreconcilable nature, he very soon leaves her and continues his art education as a self-taught person, using reproductions and regularly drawing. Back in January 1874, in his letter, Vincent listed fifty-six favorite artists to Theo, among whom the names of Jean François Millet, Théodore Rousseau, Jules Breton, Constant Troyon and Anton Mauve stood out.
And now, at the very beginning of his artistic career, his sympathies for the realistic French and Dutch schools of the nineteenth century have in no way weakened. Besides social art Millet or Breton, with their populist themes, could not help but find in him an unconditional follower. As for the Dutchman Anton Mauwe, there was another reason: Mauwe, along with Johannes Bosboom, the Maris brothers and Joseph Israels, was one of the major representatives of the Hague School, the most significant artistic phenomenon in Holland in the second half of the 19th century, which united the French realism of the Barbizon school formed around Rousseau, with the great realistic tradition of the Dutch art XVII century. Mauve was also a distant relative of Vincent's mother.
And it was under the guidance of this recognized master that in 1881, upon returning to Holland (to Etten, where his parents moved), Van Gogh created his first two paintings: “Still Life with Cabbage and Wooden Shoes” (now in Amsterdam, in the Vincent Van Gogh Museum) and “Still Life with Beer Glass and Fruit” (Wuppertal, Von der Heydt Museum).

For Vincent, everything seems to be working out for the better, and the family seems to be happy with his new calling. But soon relations with parents deteriorate sharply, and then are completely interrupted. The reason for this, again, is his rebellious character and unwillingness to adapt, as well as a new, inappropriate and again unrequited love for his cousin Kay, who recently lost her husband and was left alone with a child.

Having fled to The Hague, in January 1882 Vincent meets Christina Maria Hoornik, nicknamed Sin, an older prostitute, an alcoholic, with a child, and even pregnant. Being at the apogee of his contempt for existing decency, he lives with her and even wants to get married. Despite financial difficulties, he continues to be faithful to his calling and completes several works. Mostly pictures of this very early period- landscapes, mainly sea and urban: the theme is quite in the tradition of the Hague School.
However, its influence is limited to the choice of subjects, since Van Gogh was not characterized by that refined texture, that elaboration of details, those ultimately idealized images that distinguished the artists of this movement. From the very beginning, Vincent gravitated towards an image that was more truthful than beautiful, trying first of all to express a sincere feeling, and not just achieve a good performance.