VINCENT VAN GOGH

Who is Vincent van Gogh?
Vincent van Gogh was a famous impressionist painter.

He was born in 1853 in Zundert, Netherlands. (Red area)

His father was a preacher, and he thought his "calling" was to preach as well. However, after many unhappy and unsuccessful years, he decided to get into artistry.

His father was a preacher, and he thought his "calling" was to preach as well. However, after many unhappy and unsuccessful years, he decided to get into artistry.

VAN GOGH IN BELGIUM

• When van Gogh wanted to be a preacher, he moved to Borinage, Belgium.
• When he decided to go into artistry, he stayed in Belgium to paint.

VAN GOGH IN PARIS

van Gogh decided to move to Paris with his brother Theo.

Here he studies art with Cormon, and met Pissarro, Monet, and Gauguin.

He then decided to move to Arles (south of Paris)

VAN GOGH AND THE YELLOW HOUSE

It was here that he showed signs of depression. It was also here when he cut off his ear.

Van Gogh cut off his ear to send to his girlfriend, someone named Rachel on Christmas Eve.

AFTER EAR

• Roommate moved out
• His brother convinced him to go to an insane asylum

VAN GOGH IN THE

ST. RÉMY ASYLUM

• He self-admitted himself
• He made some famous paintings here, such as Starry Night

ASYLUM AND HOSPITAL

• He created many paintings in these places
• He created the landscapes in these paintings
• Many of his paintings revolve around the assylum and hospital

Vincent Van Gogh committed suicide in 1890

VAN GOGHS DEPRESSION

Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

• Some believe that some of his depression was caused by something called Temporal Lobe Epilepsy. He suffered from seizures , and this is what some doctors believe is the cause. He was born with a brain lesion, and the medicine that they used causes yellow spots to be seen, which might be why he used yellow so frequently.

BIPOLAR DISORDER

• Another might be bipolar disorder. Many believe that since his transition from extreme religion to extreme art was so contrasting, it eventually led to bipolar disorder, then depression, and finally suicide.

THUJONE POISONING

• Van Gogh drank a toxic drink to ease his epilepsy, anxiety, and depression. It was called Absinthe, which has a toxin in it called Thujone. The Thujone worked against Van Gogh's epilepsy and manic depression. High doses of the toxin can also cause someone to see some objects in yellow.

LEAD POISONING

• Another theory to his madness is lead poisoning. Many believe that he "nibbled on paint chips". Many types of paint were lead based. He also tried to poison himself by drinking paint and kerosene. One of the effects of this is seeing things that resemble halos around objects. An example of this is seen in Starry Night.

How did van Gogh's depression affect his artwork?

HOW DID IT AFFECT ARTWORK?

• As mentioned before, some of his depression side effects caused him to see yellow. This might be why he has an affinity for yellow in his artwork.
• Another thing is him drawing in darker tones and colors like in some of his self portraits.
• Another thing that was affected was Starry Night. As mentioned before, the "halos" around the stars could be because of his depression led lead poisoning.

DEPRESSING ART

• There are many works attributed to his depression.
• This includes the drawing, Sorrow.
• Also, the long list of paintings made while he was in the Asylum.

Example of halos in Starry Night

This work is called Sorrow

Dark Tones

He created over 1,000 drawings, 150 watercolors, 10 graphic works, 9 lithographs and an etching, not to mention his 900+ paintings in his career.

VAN GOGH WORKS SEEN AT THE

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