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Vincent van Gogh was born on 30th March 1853 in a little
village in the south of the Netherlands. He was the
eldest child of a clergyman and had three sisters and
two brothers. Coming from a respectable middle-class
family, Vincent learned to love books and drawing.
However, he was not a brilliant student at school.
Rather, his talent was displayed in art. His parents
realized his gift in this area and admired the careful
accuracy of his drawings. This was important to young
Vincent. Vincent's interest in paintings was partly
influenced by his uncles, three of whom were art
dealers. At 16, he started work at Goupil and Company,
an important firm of art dealers. Impressed with his
work, his company sent him to work in the London
gallery. It was in England that he became distressed by
the sight of poverty all around him and the enormous gap
between the rich and the poor. He decided that he wanted
to help the poor and started reading the Bible to become
a priest. His work suffered and he was transferred to
the main gallery in Paris. Later, he was dismissed for
absence without leave. He had also failed to qualify as
a priest.
It was not until 1880, at the age of 27, that Vincent
decided to become a professional artist. He spent the
next five years developing his artistic talent. He had
little money and lived in cheap rooms all over the
Netherlands. The death of his father in 1885, shattered
him. However, he became more determined than ever to be
a successful artist.
Throughout his life, Vincent was poor; often hungry
and ill. It was his determination to succeed that kept
him going until he collapsed in 1890 at the age of 37.
His paintings are colorful, bold and passionate, often
constructed with painstaking care over several months.
Today, he is perhaps the most famous painter in the
world. In 1987, his painting of `Sunflowers' was sold in
London at a high price. He also left behind over 40 self
portraits capturing himself in different moods:
cheerful, grim, determined or miserable. |
