Vincent Van Gogh: life, art, and legacy

¶ … Vincent Van Gogh's Artwork Became Famous After His Death

Vincent van Gogh is one of the most well-known artists of all time. His works sell for extraordinary sums of money. Many artists like van Gogh became popular only after their death. Vincent contributed much to Western society. His artistic vision laid the groundwork for modern impressionism, abstraction and even expressionism. His technique is still admired today by artists and students alike. His artwork became popular after his death as more and more people began recognizing the subtle brilliance of his work. This idea is explored more below.

Artistic Style

Vincent Van Gogh is among the most well-known artists of all time. His work including The Starry Night and Sunflowers is often copied on post cards, posters and paintings from the home. Van Gogh is considered among the greatest of the "post-impressionist" artists. His artwork is well-known in part because of its bold use of color, course strokes and interestingly contoured art forms (Pioch, 2002). Many feel that his work reflected the mental illness he suffered during his life, which is discussed in the next section. Vincent's work also influenced many artistic styles including early abstraction, fauvism and expressionism (Wikipedia, 2005).

Despite his stunning work, during his lifetime Van Gogh sold just one painting (Pioch, 2002). It was only after his death that his artistic genius was well-known and appreciated. This is due in part because his work inspired similar styles of work including expressionism and abstraction.

Mental Illness

Much of the literature available about van Gogh notes his frequent bouts with mental illness. During his lifetime Vincent spent many nights in an asylum. In fact, the famous artists spent more than a year at Saint-Remy asylum, "working between repeated bouts of madness" (MCS, 2005). At one point van Gogh threatened another painter with a razor. Eventually van Gogh shot and killed himself as a result of the pain and immense mental torture he suffered during his lifetime.

Many suggest that the most brilliant and crazy people in the world are artists. This is definitely true of van Gogh. Part of what draws people to van Gogh's work after his death is the immense emotional intensity evident in his paintings. His works reflect subtle and not so subtle emotions, including darkness and light. The contrast between dark and light times in his work further supports the notion that van Gogh suffered from bipolar disorder, a mental illness characterized by tremendous mood swings. Fortunately the public has a fascination for people with mental illness. Vincent's mental state is an often-discussed topic in modern society, and one of the reasons he is still famous today.

Letters to Brother

During Vincent's life he wrote more than 700 letters to his brother Theo. These letters are often considered an "illuminating record" of the artist's life, pain and mental states (MCS, 2005). Through these letters van Gogh describes his more than 750 paintings and 1600 drawings. Holroyd-Reece & Meier-Graefe (1933) suggests that Vincent "Longed for intercourse with people in similar circumstances to himself ... he believed there were such" (p. 28). This longing to be with like-minded people is but one element of his many letters to his brother Theo. It is well-known that Theo sacrificed much of his own "spiritual happiness" to provide for and serve his brother (Holroyd-Reece & Meier-Graefe, 1933).

Vincent became popular only after his death because people found his tragic life experience extraordinary. Some of the pain and emotions he felt are evident through his letters to his brother, while other emotions are evident through the pictures he painted, particularly his self-portrait (Meissner, 1993). People also began to recognize the craftsmanship and skill van Gogh possessed. Many future styles of art drew from some of the techniques evident in van Gogh's early works.

Conclusions

Vincent van Gogh lived a brief and tragic life. However his work will live on for centuries, inspiring artist's young and old alike. Much of his artwork set the foundation for modern forms of art including expressionism and abstraction. Much of van Gogh's work also reflected the inner turmoil he struggled with during his lifetime. His maddening emotions are evident in all of his works, particularly his self-portrait.

His letters to his brother, uncovered after his passing, have also contributed to his fame and glory. Many of these letters contain valuable insights into the artist's style, emotions and desires while painting. While many refer to van Gogh as a "tragic" personality, at the very least one must credit him with contributing much to the world of art in his time and in modern times.