The Van Gogh Gallery Blog

Over the weekend, I had the extreme pleasure of seeing Van Gogh: Brush with Genius at a local OMNIMAX theatre.   The film by Peter Knapp and Francois Bertrand, brings to life the words and works of Van Gogh on a larger than life scale.  Narrated though the words of Van Gogh, as taken from his letters, the film tells Vincent’s story largely in his own words.

Some of the most interesting commentary was on Van Gogh’s shift from his darker early works which use little color to his later works in which he embraced color and often demonstrated the dramatic effects of using complimentary colors.  These effects became even more apparent seeing each yellow and violet brush stroke paired together on the big screen.  One such painting, besides the most obvious example, Starry Night with its vibrant yellows against violet, is the painting of the Bank of the Oise at Auvers on the left. 

Another enjoyable facet of the movie was seeing the real life places, which still exist today, where Van Gogh lived and that he captured in some of his most famous paintings.   Following his life from the early years in the Netherlands to Paris to Arles and Saint-Remy and finally to Auvers-sur-Oise, Van Gogh becomes less of a myth as you experience his homes and landscapes through viewing their present day counterparts.       

If you have the opportunity to see Van Gogh: Brush with Genius, you will have a chance to experience Van Gogh’s life and work in a way that even he could not.  If you have already seen the film, share your comments about it here.

A new application for the iPhone called “Yours, Vincent” is now available for Van Gogh fans to download.  The application takes iPhone users through selected accounts from Vincent van Gogh’s letters along with accompanying images of his works.  The app was developed to go along with the exhibit “Van Gogh’s Letters: The Artist Speaks” which opens today and will run through January 3, 2010 at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.  Created by the Van Gogh Museum in collaboration with Antenna Audio, the application is one of the first of its kind developed by a European museum.  This new application is available for free from the iTunes App Store.

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 The Van Gogh Gallery is now on Facebook! Because of the high level of interest from our audience in updates and information on all things related to the life and work of Vincent van Gogh, we have created our own Facebook page. Become a fan and help us get the conversation started! Our intention is that the Van Gogh Gallery Facebook page becomes a platform for Van Gogh lovers to share discussions about favorite Van Gogh paintings, photos from trips to museums and Van Gogh sites, news about Van Gogh exhibits and more. Please join us today by becoming a fan and help build the Van Gogh Gallery community on Facebook!

I recently received another inquiry about some drawings owned by a Van Gogh Gallery visitor. The four drawings shown were sent to me with the following inquiry:

“I purchased 4 pencil drawings some years back at a flea market. They aren’t signed but 3 different museums have said that they are late 1800’s and look to possibly be Van Gogh. I wanted to send you three pictures. Two are pencil drawings and one is a faint sketch on the back of a drawing. “

Our reader would like to get any feedback on these drawings, so if you recognize any of them as being drawn by a particular artist, whether it is Van Gogh or someone else, please share your expert opinions with us. We would love to learn more about these pieces. Please comment and share your thoughts.
 
  

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If you have the opportunity, the best way to experience Van Gogh’s masterpieces is up close and in person. A number of years ago I was lucky enough to have a chance to visit the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Before visiting I had an appreciation for Van Gogh. I knew all the crowd-pleasers like Starry Night, Sunflowers, and Café Terrace on the Place du Forum. I had read Irving Stone’s Lust for Life and became interested in Van Gogh’s life. But, it was not until experiencing the Van Gogh Museum that I could really appreciate the breadth of his work and the story of his life.

The Van Gogh Museum is home to over 200 Van Gogh paintings as well as many of his drawings and letters. This is the largest collection of Van Gogh works anywhere in the world. See works like The Potato Eaters, Almond Blossom, Irises and The Bedroom. Although the museum itself is more modern than other nearby museums like the Rijksmuseum, also located on the Museumplein, you will feel as though you are transported back to Van Gogh’s time as he tells you his story in his words while you peruse letters handwritten by Van Gogh. You will be taken aback when you realize that this multistory building is houses mainly one man’s work, and when you see his use of color and brushstrokes in person it is awe-inspiring.

While the museum is mainly covers Van Gogh, it also hosts works by other artists like Gauguin, Monet, Pissarro, Seurat, and other artists of the 19th century as well as temporary exhibitions of other artist’s work. Opening on the 18th is an exhibit of Belgian artist Alfred Stevens’ work. If you have stories or photos from your trip to the Van Gogh Museum that you would like to add, please share your comments.

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Recently, a photo of Vincent van Gogh has been the topic of many discussions surrounding Van Gogh.  The photo can be seen on VanGoghFoto.com where it states that it has been proven to be a photo of Vincent van Gogh from 1886.  The photo is also in the book by Ken Wilkie The Van Gogh File, the Myth and The Man.  While there are known images of Van Gogh’s family members, there are very few of Van Gogh himself especially as an adult.  Since this is thought to be one of the few photos of Van Gogh, we would love to get your opinion about the photo and whether or not you think it resembles the likeness he captured in so many of his self portraits such as these.  Comment and share your thoughts.

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Due to the great response we received from our last “Share Your Painting” post, I thought I would share another visitor painting inquiry with you.  The images of paintings shown were sent to me by a Van Gogh Gallery visitor who is interested in learning more about these paintings.  He believes that these paintings have some markings similar to Van Gogh’s work.  He says there is a signature in the lower left on one of the paintings with a ‘v’ like shape which wraps around a face.   The paintings are 8”x10” on canvas with handmade tack nails holding the canvas to the frame.  Again, since we do not do art authentication, I thought I would share these works here for you to offer your expert opinion and help give the owner of these paintings more information about these works.  Please comment and share your thoughts on these pieces.

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We have recently added a Van Gogh video by Alexander Lukin and Alexander Chernov of the creative team LUCH to the Van Gogh Gallery.  This video takes you though many of Van Gogh’s most famous drawings which they have animated and set to the music of Thom Yorke.  If you haven’t checked out Van Gogh’s drawings in a while, viewing this video will bring them to life for you and give you a new appreciation of what it may have been like for Vincent as he was sketching each of these scenes.  If you have a favorite Van Gogh video available online, feel free to comment and share it with us!  

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Vincent van Gogh was born on this day in 1853.  In honor of Van Gogh’s birthday, I thought I would share some of my favorite Van Gogh quotes:

“An artist needn’t be a clergyman or a churchwarden, but he certainly must have a warm heart for his fellow men.”

“It is not the language of painters but the language of nature which one should listen to…. The feeling for the things themselves, for reality, is more important than the feeling for pictures.”

Read more great Van Gogh Quotes!

The Play Vincent in Brixton written by Nicholas Wright in 2002 is currently being performed again in the UK.  The play, although fictional, is based on the time Van Gogh spent in Brixton, London in 1873.  Van Gogh was only 20 years old at the time and had not yet become an artist, but was pursuing a profession as an art dealer. The play, however, focuses more on Vincent’s relationships with his landlady and her daughter and his psychological state.  I have not seen this play, but have read that it has received many good reviews and awards including a Tony award in 2003 for Best Play.  The play can be seen in several theatres in around the UK throughout the month of April. If you have seen the play, let us know what you thought – comment and share your opinion!