Vincent Van Gogh

1853-

1890

Starry NightOil on Canvas, 1889

"I am not an adventurer by choice but by fate."

• Born in Holland

• One of six children

• The son of a pastor and raised in a religious atmosphere

• Mostly self-taught artist

• Post-Impressionist

• Very short career due to mental illness

• Only sold one painting during his lifetime

Vincent Van Gogh Still Life: Vase with RosesOil on Canvas, 1890

The Importance of DrawingVincent Van Gogh firmly believed that to be a great painter you had to first master drawing before adding color. He wrote over 1,000 letters to his brother and friends, often including sketches of subjects he was interested in.

Road with Men Walking, Carriage, Cypress, Star, and Crescent Moon,1890

Peasant Sitting by the Fireplace (worn out),

1881 Plowman with Two Women, 1883

• He did not have a lot of confidence in his skill as an artist, and neither did his parents

• His brother supported and encouraged him

• He started focusing on and studying art at the age of 27 and is mostly self taught

• His early works were done with dark colors

Early Work

The Potato Eaters, 1885Oil Painting

One of Van Gogh’s first masterpieces.

ImpressionismIn 1886, he went to Paris to join his brother Théo, the manager of Goupil's gallery. In Paris, van Gogh studied with Cormon, inevitably met Camille Pissarro, Claude Monet, and Paul Gauguin.

Having met the new Impressionist painters, he tried to imitate their techniques; he began to lighten his very dark palette and to paint in the short brushstrokes of the Impressionists’ style.

Still Life: Vase with Fifteen SunflowersOil on Canvas, 1888

Bois de Boulogne with People WalkingOil on Canvas, 1886

Still Life: With Basket and Six OrangesOil on Canvas, 1888

Unable to successfully copy the style, he developed his own more bold and unconventional style.

Post-Impressionist painters wanted to express their meaning beyond the surface appearance; they painted with EMOTION, INTELLECT, and THE EYE. The post-impressionism painters stressed their personal view of the visual world and had a freely expressive use of color and form to describe emotions and movement.

Post-Impressionism

After failing to create an artist community in France, Van Gogh’s mental illness overcame him.

He committed himself to a mental asylum after going after Paul Gaugin with a knife and then cutting off part of his ear.

He stayed in the asylum for almost two years. He painted “Starry Night,” while there and many other pieces.

History shows that he took his own life only six months after leaving the asylum.

A Dark Time

Mulberry TreeOil on Canvas, 1889

What he Left BehindVan Gogh's finest works were produced in less than three years in a technique that grew more and more impassioned in brushstroke, and intense color, and in the movement and vibration of form and line. He was an emotional painter and used art as a therapy to express himself.

In spite of his lack of success during his lifetime, Van Gogh is now viewed as one of the most influential artists having helped lay the foundations of modern art.

The Red Vineyard Oil on Canvas, 1888

The only piece sold while Van Gogh was alive.

The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum, Arles, at Night, Oil on Canvas, 1888Old Man in Sorrow

Oil on Canvas, 1890

Starry Night Café

Core Elements of Art Covered:

1) Contrasting Colors2) Proportion3) Shadow4) Movement of Line

STEP TWO1/3 from the bottom, draw a curved line.

STEP THREEDraw the curve of the bottom of the cup first. Connect two lines going up.

STEP ONEPut your name on the back of the paper.

STEP FIVEDraw the cup handle.

STEP SIXDraw the swirls and lines. Draw the shadow curve on the bottom of the cup.

STEP FOURAt the top of the cup, match the curve at the bottom of the cup. The draw the opposite curve to complete the top of the cup.

REMAINING STEPSMake the corner and side of the cup a little darker. Add color to the table that is different from the cup. Use a darker color to add as the shadow under the cup.

STEP SEVEN AND EIGHTGo over the swirl lines with dashes to create the illusion of motion. Then fill in the cup. You may need to layer this with color.