Where was Vincent van Gogh born? The life of Vincent van Gogh. Terrible health condition

Name: Vincent Gogh

Age: 37 years

Place of Birth: Groot Zundert, Netherlands

A place of death: Auvers-sur-Oise, France

Activity: Dutch post-impressionist artist

Family status: wasn't married

Vincent Van Gogh - biography

Vincent Van Gogh did not seek to prove to others that he was a real artist; he was not vain. The only person he wanted to prove this to was himself.

For a long time, Vincent Van Gogh did not have any formulated goal in life or profession. According to tradition, generations of Van Goghs either chose a church career or became art dealers. Vincent's father, Theodorus Van Gogh, was a Protestant minister who served in the small town of Groot Zundert in South Holland, on the border with Belgium.

Vincent's uncles, Cornelius and Wiene, traded paintings in Amsterdam and The Hague. Mother, Anna Cornelia Carbendus, a wise woman who lived for almost a hundred years, suspected that her son was not an ordinary Van Gogh, as soon as he was born on March 30, 1853. A year earlier, to the same day, she gave birth to a boy named by the same name. He didn't live even a few days. So, according to fate, the mother believed, her Vincent was destined to live for two.

At the age of 15, having studied for two years at school in the town of Zevenbergen, and then another two in high school, which bore the name of King William II, Vincent left his studies and in 1868, with the help of his uncle Vince, he entered the branch of the Parisian art company Goupil and Co. that had opened in The Hague. He worked well, the young man was appreciated for his curiosity - he studied books on the history of painting and visited museums. Vincent was promoted and sent to the London branch of Goupil.

Van Gogh stayed in London for two years, became a deep connoisseur of engravings by English masters and acquired the gloss befitting a businessman, quoted the fashionable Dickens and Eliot, and shaved his red cheeks smoothly. In general, as his younger brother Theo, who later also went into trading, testified, he lived in those years with almost blissful delight in everything that surrounded him. Heart overflow wrested passionate words from him: “There is nothing more artistic than loving people!” - wrote Vincent. Actually, the brothers' correspondence is the main document of the life of Vincent Van Gogh. Theo was the person Vincent turned to as his confessor. Other documents are sketchy and fragmentary.

Vincent Van Gogh had a brilliant future as a commission agent. He was soon to move to Paris, to the central branch of Goupil.

What happened to him in 1875 in London is not known. He wrote to his brother Theo that he suddenly fell into “painful loneliness.” It is believed that in London, Vincent, having truly fallen in love for the first time, was rejected. But his chosen one is called either the owner of the boarding house at 87 Hackford Road, where he lived, Ursula Loyer, or her daughter Eugenia, and even a certain German woman named Caroline Haanebeek. Since in his letters to his brother, from whom he did not hide anything, Vincent kept silent about this love of his, it is possible to assume that his “painful loneliness” had other reasons.

Even in Holland, according to contemporaries, Vincent at times caused bewilderment with his demeanor. The expression on his face suddenly became somewhat absent, alien; there was something thoughtful, deeply serious, melancholic in him. True, then he laughed heartily and cheerfully, and his whole face then brightened. But more often than not he seemed very lonely. Yes, in fact, he was. He lost interest in working at Gupil. The transfer to the Paris branch in May 1875 did not help either. In early March 1876, Van Gogh was fired.

In April 1876, he returned to England a completely different person - without any gloss or ambition. He took a job as a teacher at the Rev. William P. Stoke's School in Ramsgate, where he received a class of 24 boys aged 10 to 14 years. He read the Bible to them, and then turned to the Reverend Father with a request to allow him to serve prayer services for the parishioners of Turnham Green Church. Soon he was allowed to lead the Sunday sermon. True, he did it extremely boringly. It is known that his father also lacked emotionality and the ability to capture an audience.

At the end of 1876, Vincent wrote to his brother that he understood his true destiny - he would be a preacher. He returned to Holland and entered the theological faculty of the University of Amsterdam. Ironically, he, who spoke four languages ​​fluently: Dutch, English, French and German, failed to master the Latin course. Based on the test results, he was assigned in January 1879 as a parish priest to the mining village of Vasmes in the poorest Borinage region in Europe in Belgium.

The missionary delegation, which visited Father Vincent in Wasmes a year later, was quite alarmed by the changes in Van Gogh. Thus, the delegation discovered that Father Vincent had moved from a comfortable room to a shack, sleeping on the floor. He distributed his clothes to the poor and wore a worn military uniform, under which he wore a homemade burlap shirt. I didn’t wash my face so as not to stand out among the miners stained with coal dust. They tried to convince him that Scripture should not be taken literally, but New Testament not a direct guide to action, but Father Vincent denounced the missionaries, which, naturally, ended in removal from office.

Van Gogh did not leave Borinage: he moved to the tiny mining village of Kuzmes, and, living on donations from the community, and essentially for a piece of bread, continued the mission of the preacher. He even interrupted his correspondence with his brother Theo for a while, not wanting to accept help from him.

When the correspondence resumed, Theo was once again surprised by the changes that had occurred in his brother. In letters from the impoverished Kuzmes, he talked about art: “You need to understand the defining word contained in the masterpieces of great masters, and there will be God!” And he said that he draws a lot. Miners, miners' wives, their children. And everyone likes it.

This change surprised Vincent himself. For advice on whether he should continue painting, he went to the French artist Jules Breton. He did not know Breton, but in his past life as a commission agent he respected the artist to such an extent that he walked 70 kilometers to Courrières, where Breton lived. I found Breton's house, but was too shy to knock on the door. And, depressed, he set off on foot back to Kuzmes.

Theo believed that after this incident his brother would return to old life. But Vincent continued to draw like a man possessed. In 1880, he came to Brussels with the firm intention of studying at the Academy of Arts, but his application was not even accepted. Vincent wasn't upset at all. He bought drawing manuals by Jean-François Millet and Charles Bagh, popular in those years, and went to his parents, intending to engage in self-education.

Only his mother approved of Vincent's decision to become an artist, which surprised the whole family. The father was very wary of the changes in his son, although the pursuit of art fit well into the canons of Protestant ethics. The uncles, who had been selling paintings for decades, looked at Vincent’s drawings and decided that his nephew was crazy.

The incident with cousin Cornelia only strengthened their suspicions. Cornelia, who was recently widowed and raising her son alone, took a liking to Vincent. To woo her, he burst into his uncle's house, stretched out his hand over an oil lamp, and vowed to hold it over the fire until he was allowed to see his cousin. Cornelia's father resolved the situation by blowing out the lamp, and Vincent, humiliated, left the house.

His mother was very worried about Vincent. She persuaded her distant relative Anton Mauve, a successful artist, to support his son. Mauve sent Vincent a box of watercolors and then met with him. After looking at Van Gogh's works, the artist gave some advice. But having learned that the model with a child depicted in one of the sketches was a woman of easy virtue with whom Vincent now lived, he refused to maintain further relations with him.

Van Gogh met Klasina at the end of February 1882 in The Hague. She had two young children and had nowhere to live. Taking pity on her, he invited Klasina and her children to live with him. They were together for a year and a half. Vincent wrote to his brother that in this way he atones for the sin of Klasina’s fall, taking on someone else’s guilt. In gratitude, she and her children patiently posed for Vincent's oil studies.

It was then that he admitted to Theo that the main thing in his life was art. “Everything else is a consequence of art. If something has nothing to do with art, it doesn’t exist.” Klasina and her children, whom he loved very much, became a burden to him. In September 1883 he left them and left The Hague.

For two months, Vincent, half-starved, wandered around North Holland with an easel. During this time he painted dozens of portraits and hundreds of sketches. Returning to parents' house, where he was received as coolly as ever, he announced that everything he had done before was “studies.” And now he is ready to paint a real picture.

Van Gogh worked on “The Potato Eaters” for a long time. I made a lot of sketches and sketches. He had to prove to everyone and to himself, first of all, to himself that he was a real artist. Margo Begeman, who lived next door, was the first to believe it. A forty-five-year-old woman fell in love with Van Gogh, but he, engrossed in working on the painting, did not notice her. Desperate, Margo tried to poison herself. She was saved with difficulty. Upon learning of this, Van Gogh was very upset, and many times in letters to Theo he returned to this accident.

Having finished "Eaters", he was satisfied with the picture and at the beginning of 1886 he left for Paris - he was suddenly fascinated by the works of the great French artist Delacroix on color theory.

Even before leaving for Paris, I tried to connect color and music, for which I took several piano lessons. "Prussian blue!" "Yellow chrome!" - he exclaimed, hitting the keys, stunning the teacher. He specifically studied Rubens' violent colors. on his own paintings lighter colors have already appeared, and yellow has become my favorite color. True, when Vincent wrote to his brother about his desire to come to him in Paris and meet the Impressionists, he tried to dissuade him. Theo feared that the atmosphere of Paris would be disastrous for Vincent. But his persuasion had no effect...

Unfortunately, Van Gogh's Parisian period is the least documented. For two years in Paris, Vincent lived with Theo in Montmartre, and the brothers, of course, did not correspond.

It is known that Vincent immediately immersed himself in the artistic life of the French capital. He visited exhibitions, got acquainted with " the last word» Impressionism - works by Seurat and Signac. These pointillist artists, taking the principles of impressionism to the extreme, marked its final stage. He became friends with Toulouse-Lautrec, with whom he attended drawing classes.

Toulouse-Lautrec, having seen Van Gogh’s works and heard from Vincent that he was “just an amateur,” ambiguously noted that he was mistaken: amateurs are those who paint bad paintings. Vincent persuaded his brother, who was well-known in artistic circles, to introduce him to the masters - Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, Pierre-Auguste Renoir. And Camille Pissarro felt sympathy for Van Gogh to such an extent that he took Vincent to “Père Tanguy’s Shop.”

The owner of this store of paints and other art materials was an old communard and a generous philanthropist. He allowed Vincent to organize the first exhibition of works in the store, in which his closest friends also participated: Bernard, Toulouse-Lautrec and Anquetin. Van Gogh persuaded them to unite into the “Group of the Small Boulevards” - as opposed to the famous artists of the Grand Boulevards.

He had long been struck by the idea of ​​creating, on the model of medieval fraternities, a community of artists. However, his impulsive nature and uncompromising judgments prevented him from building relationships with friends. He became not himself again.

It began to seem to him that he was too susceptible to other people's influence. And Paris, the city he longed for, instantly became disgusting to him. “I want to hide somewhere to the south so as not to see so many artists who, as people, disgust me,” he wrote to his brother from the small town of Arles in Provence, where he went in February 1888.

In Arles, Vincent felt like himself. “I find that what I learned in Paris disappears, and I return to those thoughts that came to me in nature, before meeting the Impressionists,” Gauguin’s harsh disposition, he told Theo in August 1888. How and before, Van Gogh's brother was constantly working. He wrote on outdoors, not paying attention to the wind, which often overturned the easel and covered the palette with sand. He also worked at night - using Goya's system, placing burning candles on his hat and on the easel. This is how “Night Cafe” and “ Starlight Night over the Rhone."

But then the abandoned idea of ​​​​creating a community of artists took possession of him again. For fifteen francs a month, he rented four rooms in the “Yellow House,” which became famous thanks to his paintings, on Place Lamartine, at the entrance to Arles. And on September 22, after repeated persuasion, Paul Gauguin came to him. This was a tragic mistake. Vincent, idealistically confident in Gauguin's friendly disposition, told him everything he thought. He also did not hide his opinion. On Christmas Eve 1888, after a heated argument with Gauguin, Vincent grabbed a razor to attack his friend.

Gauguin escaped and moved to a hotel at night. Flowing into a frenzy, Vincent cut off his left earlobe. The next morning he was found bleeding in the Yellow House and sent to the hospital. A few days later he was released. Vincent seemed to have recovered, but after the first attack of mental confusion, others followed. His inappropriate behavior frightened the residents so much that a deputation of townspeople wrote a petition to the mayor and demanded to rid them of the “red-haired madman.”

Despite many attempts by researchers to declare Vincent crazy, it is still impossible not to recognize his general sanity, or, as psychiatrists say, “criticality of his condition.” On May 8, 1889, he voluntarily entered the specialized hospital of St. Paul of Mausoleum near Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. He was observed by Dr. Théophile Peyron, who came to the conclusion that the patient was suffering from something resembling a split personality. And he prescribed treatment by periodic immersion in a bath of water.

Of particular benefit in healing mental disorders hydrotherapy did not bring anyone any harm, but there was no harm from it either. Van Gogh was much more depressed by the fact that the patients of the hospital were not allowed to do anything. He begged Doctor Peyron to allow him to go to sketches, accompanied by an orderly. So, under supervision, he painted many works, including “Road with Cypress Trees and a Star” and the landscape “Olive Trees, Blue Sky and White Cloud.”

In January 1890, after the Group of Twenty exhibition in Brussels, in which Theo Van Gogh participated, the first and only painting by Vincent during the artist’s lifetime was sold: “Red Vineyards at Arles.” For four hundred francs, which is approximately equal to the current eighty US dollars. To somehow cheer Theo up, he wrote to him: “The practice in the art trade, when prices rise after the death of the author, has survived to this day - it’s something like the tulip trade, when a living artist has more minuses than pluses.”

Van Gogh himself was immensely happy with the success. Even if the prices for the works of the Impressionists, who by that time had become classics, were incomparably higher. But he had his own method, his own path, found with such difficulty and torment. And he was finally recognized. Vincent drew non-stop. By that time, he had already painted more than 800 paintings and almost 900 drawings—no other artist had created so many works in just ten years of creativity.

Theo, inspired by the success of the Vineyards, sent his brother more and more paints, but Vincent began to eat them. Dr. Neuron had to hide the easel and palette under lock and key, and when they were returned to Van Gogh, he said that he would no longer go to sketches. Why, he explained in a letter to his sister - Theo, he was afraid to admit this: “... when I am in the fields, I am so overwhelmed by a feeling of loneliness that I’m even scared to go out somewhere...”

In May 1890, Theo agreed with Dr. Gachet, a homeopathic physician at a clinic in Auvers-sur-Oise outside Paris, that Vincent would continue his treatment. Gachet, who appreciates painting and is himself fond of drawing, gladly welcomed the artist to his clinic.

Vincent also liked Dr. Gachet, whom he considered warm-hearted and optimistic. On June 8, Theo and his wife and child came to visit his brother, and Vincent spent a wonderful day with his family, talking about the future: “We all need fun and happiness, hope and love. The scarier, the older, the angrier, the sicker I become, the more I want to fight back by creating a great color, impeccably constructed, brilliant.”

A month later, Gachet already allowed Van Gogh to go to his brother in Paris. Theo, whose daughter was then very ill and his financial affairs were shaken, did not greet Vincent very kindly. A quarrel broke out between them. Its details are unknown. But Vincent felt that he had become a burden to his brother. And probably always was like this. Shocked to the core, Vincent returned to Auvers-sur-Oise that same day.

On July 27, after lunch, Van Gogh went out with an easel to sketch. Stopping in the middle of the field, he shot himself in the chest with a pistol (how he got the weapon remained unknown, and the pistol itself was never found.). The bullet, as it turned out later, hit the rib bone, deflected and missed the heart. Clutching the wound with his hand, the artist returned to the shelter and went to bed. The owner of the shelter called doctor Mazri from the nearest village and the police.

It seemed that the wound did not cause Van Gogh much suffering. When the police arrived, he was calmly smoking a pipe while lying in bed. Gachet sent a telegram to the artist’s brother, and Theo Van Gogh arrived the next morning. Vincent before last minute was conscious. To his brother’s words that they would definitely help him recover, that he just needed to get rid of despair, he answered in French: “La tristesse “durera toujours” (“The sadness will last forever”) and died at half past two in the morning on July 29, 1890.

The priest in Auvers forbade Van Gogh to be buried in the church cemetery. It was decided to bury the artist in a small cemetery in the nearby town of Mary. On July 30, Vincent Van Gogh's body was interred. Vincent's longtime friend, the artist Emile Bernard, described the funeral in detail:

"On the walls of the room where the coffin with his body stood, his last works, forming a kind of halo, and the brilliance of genius they radiated made this death even more painful for us artists who were there. The coffin was covered with a plain white blanket and surrounded by a mass of flowers. There were sunflowers, which he loved so much, and yellow dahlias - everywhere yellow flowers. This was, as you remember, his favorite color, a symbol of light with which he dreamed of filling the hearts of people and which filled works of art.

Next to him on the floor lay his easel, his folding chair and his brushes. There were a lot of people, mostly artists, among whom I recognized Lucien Pissarro and Lauzet. I looked at the sketches; one is very beautiful and sad. Prisoners walking in a circle, surrounded by a high prison wall, a canvas painted under the impression of Doré's painting, its horrific cruelty and symbolizing his imminent end.

Wasn't life like this for him: a high prison with such high walls, with such high... and these people, endlessly walking around the pit, weren't they poor artists - damned poor souls who pass by, driven by the whip of Fate? At three o'clock his friends carried his body to the hearse, many of those present were crying. Theodore Van Gogh, who loved his brother very much and always supported him in the struggle for his art, never stopped crying...

It was terribly hot outside. We walked up the hill outside Auvers, talking about him, about the bold impulse he gave to art, about the great projects he was always thinking about, and about the good he brought to us all. We reached the cemetery: a small new cemetery, full of new tombstones. It was located on a small hill among fields that were ready for harvest, under a clear blue sky, which at that moment he still loved... I guess. Then he was lowered into the grave...

This day seemed to be created for him, until you imagine that he is no longer alive and he cannot admire this day. Dr. Gachet wanted to say a few words in honor of Vincent and his life, but he was crying so hard that he could only stutter and shyly say a few goodbye words (maybe that was the best thing). He gave short description Vincent's torment and achievements, mentioning how lofty his goal was and how much he loved him (even though he knew Vincent for a very short time).

He was, said Gachet, an honest man and a great artist, he had only two goals: humanity and art. He put art above all else, and it will repay him in kind, perpetuating his name. Then we returned. Theodore Van Gogh was heartbroken; those present began to disperse: some were secluded, simply going into the fields, others were already walking back to the station..."

Theo Van Gogh died six months later. All this time he could not forgive himself for the quarrel with his brother. The extent of his despair becomes clear from a letter he wrote to his mother shortly after Vincent's death: “It is impossible to describe my grief, just as it is impossible to find consolation. This is a grief that will last and from which I will certainly never be freed as long as I live. The only thing that can be said is that he himself found the peace he was striving for... Life was such a heavy burden for him, but now, as often happens, everyone praises his talents... Oh, mom! He was so my, my own brother.”

After Theo’s death, Vincent’s last letter was found in his archive, which he wrote after a quarrel with his brother: “It seems to me that since everyone is a little nervous and also too busy, it is not worthwhile to fully clarify all the relationships. I was a little surprised that you seemed to want to rush things. How can I help, or rather, what can I do to make you happy with this? One way or another, I mentally shake your hands tightly again and, in spite of everything, I was glad to see you all. Don't doubt it."

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 “dark, 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 a 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, however, 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.

IN this period biographies Vincent led a very modest lifestyle and repeatedly defended workers' rights.

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 a while he even attended the Academy fine arts, however, not seeing any benefit for himself, he abandoned 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.

Observing the techniques of different masters, Van Gogh began 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, there were again big changes in Van Gogh’s biography: he decided 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 upsurge. 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"Starry 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 important thing happens in the artist’s biography. famous event: 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's biographers believe that the causes of Van Gogh's mental illness could have been difficult relationships with women. He repeatedly proposed to different girls, but 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 the clinic of Dr. Gachet. 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 had financial difficulties, and my 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 the small town of Meri.

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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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 dying words 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 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 in the biography of Vincent Van Gogh there comes a moment 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 Scripture to 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 short biography 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 his personal life, in The Hague he still made another attempt 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 were 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 became the final stage 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.

A landmark place was Papa Tanga's shop, where art materials were sold. 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.

With the onset of spring, Vincent goes outside and draws flowering 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 lights up the idea of ​​creating 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 Vincent’s 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 doubtful about the version of a suicide attempt - 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, according to 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. In addition, in recent 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 briefly tell the biography of Van Gogh: 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 was a post-impressionist artist of exceptional talent. Taking the influence of the Impressionists of that period, he nevertheless developed his own, spontaneous style. He became one of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century and played a key role in the development contemporary art. Vincent was born in Groot-Zundert, a small Dutch village, on March 30, 1853. His father was a Protestant pastor. Vincent showed an interest in drawing as a child: he early works are distinguished by realism and expressiveness. The artist’s youth became a period of searching. He worked briefly as an art dealer, then as a boarding school teacher, and then, deeply interested in Christianity, became a preacher in a mining town in southern Belgium. He preached in the poor areas of Brabant, empathizing with poverty local residents and the harshness of their living conditions. He began to sleep on straw in a dilapidated hut, and his face was blackened by coal dust. The church authorities were dissatisfied with such shocking behavior, and Van Gogh was relieved of his post. In 1880, when he was already 27 years old, Van Gogh turned his interest to art. He began painting seriously, and during a stay in Paris in 1886, he was deeply impressed by the work of the Impressionist artists. During this important period in his life, Van Gogh met many artists, including Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Pissarro and Gauguin. His style changed significantly under the influence of the works of the Impressionists, becoming lighter and brighter. At this time the artist wrote a large number of self-portraits. Taking advantage financial assistance his brother Theo, in 1888 he went to live in picturesque Provence, a region in the south of France. There he created his famous series"Sunflowers".
After some time, Van Gogh invited his friend Gauguin to stay, but soon the artists began to quarrel. According to one version, one fine day Van Gogh began to threaten his guest with a razor, after which he hastily left. Deeply repenting of what he had done, Van Gogh cut off part of his own ear. This episode became the first serious symptom of the artist’s increasing mental instability. Subsequently, he was treated more than once in psychiatric hospitals. His life alternated between periods of inertia, depression and amazingly concentrated creative activity. The last two years of Van Gogh's life were the most fruitful in terms of painting. The artist felt an irresistible need to paint. “Work is an absolute necessity for me. I can’t put it off, I don’t care about anything except work,” Van Gogh said about himself. He developed a style that was fast and impetuous, leaving the artist no time for contemplation and reflection. He painted with quick movements of the brush, and more and more abstract figures appeared on his canvases - the harbingers of modern art.
On July 27, 1890, under the influence of another depression, Van Gogh shot himself in the chest. However, there were no witnesses to this incident, as well as a pistol, so the version of murder has not yet been ruled out. One way or another, two days later the artist died.

Van Gogh Vincent, Dutch painter. In 1869-1876 he served as a commission agent for an art and trading company in The Hague, Brussels, London, Paris, and in 1876 he worked as a teacher in England. Van Gogh studied theology and in 1878–1879 was a preacher in the Borinage mining region in Belgium. Defending the interests of miners brought Van Gogh into conflict with church authorities. In the 1880s, van Gogh turned to art, attending the Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels (1880–1881) and Antwerp (1885–1886).

Van Gogh used the advice of the painter A. Mauwe in The Hague, and enthusiastically painted ordinary people, peasants, artisans, and prisoners. In a series of paintings and sketches from the mid-1880s (“Peasant Woman,” 1885, State Museum Kröller-Müller, Otterlo; “The Potato Eaters”, 1885, Vincent van Gogh Foundation, Amsterdam), painted in a dark painterly palette, marked by a painfully acute perception of human suffering and feelings of depression, the artist recreates an oppressive atmosphere of psychological tension.

In 1886–1888, van Gogh lived in Paris, attended a private art studio, studied impressionist painting, Japanese engraving, and the “synthetic” works of Paul Gauguin. During this period, van Gogh’s palette became light, earthy colors disappeared, pure blue, golden-yellow, red tones appeared, his characteristic dynamic, flowing brush stroke (“Bridge over the Seine”, 1887, “Papa Tanguy”, 1881). In 1888, van Gogh moved to Arles, where the originality of his creative style was finally determined. Fiery artistic temperament, a painful impulse towards harmony, beauty and happiness and at the same time fear of forces hostile to man are embodied either in landscapes shining with sunny colors of the south (“Harvest. La Croe Valley”, 1888), or in ominous, reminiscent nightmare images (“Night Cafe”, 1888, private collection, New York). The dynamics of color and brushwork in Van Gogh’s paintings fills with spiritual life and movement not only nature and the people inhabiting it (“Red Vineyards in Arles”, 1888, Pushkin Museum, Moscow), but also inanimate objects (“Van Gogh’s Bedroom in Arles”, 1888) .

Van Gogh's intense work in recent years was accompanied by attacks mental illness, which led him to a mental hospital in Arles, then to Saint-Rémy (1889–1890) and to Auvers-sur-Oise (1890), where he committed suicide. Creativity of two recent years the artist's life is marked by ecstatic obsession, extremely heightened expression color combinations, sudden changes in mood - from frenzied despair and gloomy visionary (“Road with Cypresses and Stars”, 1890, Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo) to a tremulous feeling of enlightenment and peace (“Landscape at Auvers after the rain”, 1890, Pushkin Museum, Moscow) .