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Vincent Van Gogh

Thanks to Vincent Van Gogh's many letters to his younger brother, Theo, much is known about the inner turmoil of this most famous of Post-Impressionist artists. "My brush goes between my fingers as a bow on a violin," he wrote.

Sample these internet sites and complete the activities for each one to learn more about this artist who only began to paint during the last ten years of his life and who during that brief time created over 1,700 works of art.

WebMuseum - Vincent Van Gogh
http://metalab.unc.edu/wm/paint/auth/gogh/

  1. Where and when was Van Gogh born? Where and when did he die?
  2. According to this site, Van Gogh is generally considered to be the greatest Dutch painter along with what other Dutch painter?
  3. Van Gogh influenced the artistic movement called Expressionism. Write a short paragraph describing the expressionistic movement in art.
  4. According to this site, Van Gogh is ranked with what other two Post-Impressionist artists?
  5. Van Gogh's uncle worked in an international firm of picture dealers, and Van Gogh worked for him for awhile--so Van Gogh had some experience with art dealers. In what two towns did Van Gogh work for his uncle art dealer?
  6. What was the occupation of Van Gogh's father?
  7. What occupation did Van Gogh attempt among the miners of the Borinage district in Belgium?
  8. In what year did he seriously begin painting? He continued to paint for the rest of his life. How long was that?
  9. From 1881 to 1885, Van Gogh lived in the Netherlands where he mostly painted peasants and workers. What is his most famous painting from this period?
  10. Where did Van Gogh move to in 1886? What other artists did he meet there? His artistic style changed dramatically. What were two influences that fueled the change?
  11. Complete this quote by Van Gogh that describes how his artistic style changed during the last 5 years of his life: "Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more arbitrarily so as to __________________"
  12. About his painting, Night Cafe, Van Gogh said, "`I have tried to express with red and green ___________________."
  13. Describe Van Gogh's brush strokes during his last 5 years of painting.
  14. In 1888, where did Van Gogh settle? How many canvases did he paint there during a 15 month period? What was his financial situation like while he was there? What was his health like? What other artist visited him there? According to this site, what was behind the incident where Van Gogh cut off part of his ear?
  15. In May of 1889, where did Van Gogh put himself? How long did he stay there? He continued to paint while he was there. What is one of his most famous painting from this time?
  16. Where did Van Gogh move to in May of 1890? Why did he move there? How many canvases did he paint during the last 70 days of his life? What happened to Van Gogh on July 29, 1890?
  17. How many paintings did Van Gogh sell during his lifetime?

The Van Gogh Information Gallery - FAQ
http://www.vggallery.com/misc/faq.htm

  1. Here is a photo of Van Gogh's Still Life: Vase with Fourteen Sunflowers. Scroll down to see all the previous owners of this painting. Who was the original owner in 1890? How much did it sell for in in 1987 (See table on FAQ page)?
  2. Here is a photo of Van Gogh's Portrait of Doctor Gachet. How much did it sell for in 1990?
  3. Here is photo of Van Gogh's Irises. How much did it sell for in 1987?
  4. Here is a photo of one of Van Gogh's self-portraits. How much did it sell for in 1998?

Van Gogh Self-Portraits
http://www.vggallery.com/painting/main_se.htm

  1. Look through these 37 self-portaits of Van Gogh. List elements that these paintings have in common.
  2. Look at Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's portrait of Van Gogh and Paul Gaugin's portrait of Van Gogh. List any ways that these depictions are similar to Van Gogh's own portraits of himself.

Vincent Van Gogh Information Gallery - Sunflowers
http://www.vggallery.com/misc/sunflowers.htm

  1. Check out this photo of real sunflowers. Describe how Van Gogh's sunflowers are different.

Vincent Van Gogh Information Gallery - Arles
http://www.vggallery.com/painting/by_period/arles.htm

  1. These are the 189 paintings by Van Gogh when he was at Arles. Are most of them landscapes, still lifes, or portraits?

Author: LINDA MOSBACKER - Email linda.mosbacker@slc.k12.ut.us