Vincent Van Gogh

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Vincent Van Gogh
Vincent Van Gogh is a very interesting individual. Some say he was just crazy, but others think of him as a brilliant artist. Others say he is both. By looking at some of his most famous pieces of artwork such as Starry Night or his number of self portraits among other pieces of work one would clearly see that he was brilliant artist indeed. Much of Van Gogh’s life is very much still a mystery. Through my research for this paper I have found that for most major events in his life there really is no answer as to why he reacted the way he did or did what he did. There are mostly only theories or speculations. This paper will discuss some of his life history but most of the following will examine a few pieces of his artwork. When looking at these pieces of artwork one will find out how the time period affected what he painted as well as delving into describing the painting itself.
Vincent Van Gogh was born in Groot Zundert, The Netherlands March 30, 1853. “Van Gogh’s birth came one year to the day after his mother gave birth to a first, stillborn child—also named Vincent. There has been much speculation about Vincent Van Gogh suffering later psychological trauma as a result of being a replacement child and having a deceased brother with the same name and the same birth date.” (Shinn 16) Later on in his life in 1869 Van Gogh joined a firm for art dealers called Goupil & Cie. Van Gogh would continue doing this for seven years. This company would have Van Gogh moving all over the place. For example he was sent to the Paris branch of the art firm. “Finally he moved to England where he had previously had the most happy and rewarding two years of his life”(www.Vangoghgallery.com). After ending his career with the art company Van Gogh decided to begin teaching at Rev. William P. Stokes’ school in Ramsgate. “He was in charge of 24 boys between the ages of 10 and 14. According to letters that ...