VINCENT VAN GOGH - SELF PORTRAIT
VINCENT VAN GOGH - SELF PORTRAIT

VINCENT VAN GOGH - SELF PORTRAIT 1889

It is a wonder that a man so troubled by depression and mental anguish could produce such exuberant and vibrant works of art. Equally, that, although admired by fellow artists, he found no commercial success during his lifetime and that his artistic genius was only recognised posthumously. The pleasure he has given art lovers for a century and a half and the huge sums now commanded by his works were denied to him during his short life. At the age of 37, Van Gogh shot himself, ironically, in a wheatfield, and died 30 hours later of the ensuing infection.

 

Van Gogh was born into a very comfortable Dutch family in 1853 although he describes his childhood years as sterile and austere. After unhappy episodes at boarding schools, he became an art dealer and moved to London, eventually leaving after the heartbreak of unrequited love. He turned to the Church and was briefly a missionary in Belgium. It was only in 1881 that he took up painting and eventually graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, in Antwerp.

 

In 1886 he travelled to Paris, where he met the now-famous artists of the day including Emile Bernard, Cezanne, Seurat, Toulouse Lautrec and eventually Gauguin, with whom he had a fraught relation. Their friendship ended dramatically, when they lived together in Arles. During a quarrel, Van Gogh cut off his own ear with a razor blade. They parted and although they later corresponded, they never met again. By this time, Van Gogh was suffering from psychotic episodes and delusions and his friendships were frequently challenged by his unpredictable behaviour.

It is a wonder that a man so troubled by depression and mental anguish could produce such exuberant and vibrant works of art. Equally, that, although admired by fellow artists, he found no commercial success during his lifetime and that his artistic genius was only recognised posthumously. The pleasure he has given art lovers for a century and a half and the huge sums now commanded by his works were denied to him during his short life. At the age of 37, Van Gogh shot himself, ironically, in a wheatfield, and died 30 hours later of the ensuing infection.

 

Van Gogh was born into a very comfortable Dutch family in 1853 although he describes his childhood years as sterile and austere. After unhappy episodes at boarding schools, he became an art dealer and moved to London, eventually leaving after the heartbreak of unrequited love. He turned to the Church and was briefly a missionary in Belgium. It was only in 1881 that he took up painting and eventually graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, in Antwerp.

 

In 1886 he travelled to Paris, where he met the now-famous artists of the day including Emile Bernard, Cezanne, Seurat, Toulouse Lautrec and eventually Gauguin, with whom he had a fraught relation. Their friendship ended dramatically, when they lived together in Arles. During a quarrel, Van Gogh cut off his own ear with a razor blade. They parted and although they later corresponded, they never met again. By this time, Van Gogh was suffering from psychotic episodes and delusions and his friendships were frequently challenged by his unpredictable behaviour.

GLASS OF ABSINTHE AND A CARAFE by VINCENT VAN GOGH

GLASS OF ABSINTHE AND A CARAFE

by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SELF PORTRAIT WITH BANDAGED EAR by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SELF PORTRAIT WITH BANDAGED EAR

by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SUNFLOWERS by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SUNFLOWERS

by VINCENT VAN GOGH

GLASS OF ABSINTHE AND A CARAFE by VINCENT VAN GOGH

GLASS OF ABSINTHE AND A CARAFE

by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SELF PORTRAIT WITH BANDAGED EAR by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SELF PORTRAIT WITH BANDAGED EAR by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SUNFLOWERS by VINCENT VAN GOGH

SUNFLOWERS by VINCENT VAN GOGH

Van Gogh’s younger brother Theo, also an art dealer, was his closest confident, his financial and emotional support and indirectly, the guardian of his legacy. It was Theo who told him his early works were too sombre, which apparently led to Van Gogh’s developing an interest in colour theory and experimenting with brighter pigments including cobalt, emerald green and carmine. Yellow was to become his ‘emotional truth’, his sunlight, life and God.

 

Van Gogh moved from Paris to Asnieres with Theo where his work, such as Fishing in Spring, became lighter and brighter.  From Asniere, he moved south to Provence and to Arles, which was possibly his most prolific period and some of his happier moments. He rented part of The Yellow House, in which he painted the house itself, Van Gogh’s Chair, The Bedroom, The Night Café and Vase with 12 Sunflowers.  However, his psychotic episodes increased and in 1899, after hospital treatment in Arles, he was committed to an asylum in Saint Remy. There he painted possibly his most disturbing painting, Starry Night, with its wild, swirly brushstroke. In contrast, on the birth of his nephew and namesake, he painted at that same period, the lyrical and gentle Almond Blossom for the child’s room.

Van Gogh’s younger brother Theo, also an art dealer, was his closest confident, his financial and emotional support and indirectly, the guardian of his legacy. It was Theo who told him his early works were too sombre, which apparently led to Van Gogh’s developing an interest in colour theory and experimenting with brighter pigments including cobalt, emerald green and carmine. Yellow was to become his ‘emotional truth’, his sunlight, life and God.

 

Van Gogh moved from Paris to Asnieres with Theo where his work, such as Fishing in Spring, became lighter and brighter.  From Asniere, he moved south to Provence and to Arles, which was possibly his most prolific period and some of his happier moments. He rented part of The Yellow House, in which he painted the house itself, Van Gogh’s Chair, The Bedroom, The Night Café and Vase with 12 Sunflowers.  However, his psychotic episodes increased and in 1899, after hospital treatment in Arles, he was committed to an asylum in Saint Remy. There he painted possibly his most disturbing painting, Starry Night, with its wild, swirly brushstroke. In contrast, on the birth of his nephew and namesake, he painted at that same period, the lyrical and gentle Almond Blossom for the child’s room.

THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM - AMSTERDAM

THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM - AMSTERDAM

 

THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM - AMSTERDAM

THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM - AMSTERDAM

 

The Van Gogh brothers corresponded throughout their lives and the 600 letters Vincent wrote to Theo were preserved. Only 20 letters remain from Theo to Vincent. Theo died shortly after his brother and Theo’s young widow became the custodian of her brother-in-law’s legacy. Van Gogh’s reputation grew rapidly, and the publication of the letters increased the fascination with his life and thoughts. In 1925, his nephew Vincent inherited the estate from his mother and some years later, convinced the Dutch Government to create a lasting memorial to his uncle. The Van Gogh Museum was completed in 1973 and consistently attracts over 2 million visitors a year.

 

Vincent Van Gogh, the archetypical tragic genius, suffered poverty, ill health, rejection, self-harm, psychosis and little professional success in his short life. His legacy however was a body of extraordinary work, some of the world’s most famous and best-loved paintings, which auction at the eye-watering prices, a magnificent museum, biographies, films and a beautiful song inspired by that haunting work, Starry Night.

The Van Gogh brothers corresponded throughout their lives and the 600 letters Vincent wrote to Theo were preserved. Only 20 letters remain from Theo to Vincent. Theo died shortly after his brother and Theo’s young widow became the custodian of her brother-in-law’s legacy. Van Gogh’s reputation grew rapidly, and the publication of the letters increased the fascination with his life and thoughts. In 1925, his nephew Vincent inherited the estate from his mother and some years later, convinced the Dutch Government to create a lasting memorial to his uncle. The Van Gogh Museum was completed in 1973 and consistently attracts over 2 million visitors a year.

 

Vincent Van Gogh, the archetypical tragic genius, suffered poverty, ill health, rejection, self-harm, psychosis and little professional success in his short life. His legacy however was a body of extraordinary work, some of the world’s most famous and best-loved paintings, which auction at the eye-watering prices, a magnificent museum, biographies, films and a beautiful song inspired by that haunting work, Starry Night.

VAN GOGH ALMOND BLOSSOM SILK TIE  by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH ALMOND BLOSSOM SILK TIE

by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH IRISES SILK SCARF by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH IRISES SILK SCARF

by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH ALMOND BLOSSOM SILK TIE  by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH ALMOND BLOSSOM SILK TIE

by FOX & CHAVE

VAN GOGH IRISES SILK SCARF by FOX & CHAVE

V AN GOGH IRISES SILK SCARF

by FOX & CHAVE

Fox & Chave has produced over a dozen beautiful silk items inspired by Van Gogh’s work, including Sunflowers and Wheatfield, which hang in the National Gallery, Almond Blossom, his touching gift to his baby nephew and the dramatic Starry Night, painted during the dark days of the asylum. We have been delighted to supply designs to exhibitions all over the world, including the brilliantly conceived immersive experiences and recently the opening show at the newly refurbished Courtauld Gallery in London.

 

Furthermore, the theme of our Spring Silk Box, one of six annual subscription boxes, is Van Gogh. We hope customers will be delighted by silk accessories and other gifts inspired by the painter who gave us the joy that so eluded him.

Fox & Chave has produced over a dozen beautiful silk items inspired by Van Gogh’s work, including Sunflowers and Wheatfield, which hang in the National Gallery, Almond Blossom, his touching gift to his baby nephew and the dramatic Starry Night, painted during the dark days of the asylum. We have been delighted to supply designs to exhibitions all over the world, including the brilliantly conceived immersive experiences and recently the opening show at the newly refurbished Courtauld Gallery in London.

 

Furthermore, the theme of our Spring Silk Box, one of six annual subscription boxes, is Van Gogh. We hope customers will be delighted by silk accessories and other gifts inspired by the painter who gave us the joy that so eluded him.

VAN GOGH WHEATFIELD PENDANT

by FOX & CHAVE