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Vincent Van Gogh (March 30, 1853-July 29, 1890)

Vincent Van Gogh was born March 30, 1853 in Zundert, the Netherlands. Growing up he was described as a "serious and introspective child" as said by his sister. His father was a protestant minister and that was a profession Vincent would find appealing to a certain extent. Vincent also had a very close relationship with his brother, Theo, which was documented through letters they sent to each other. Theo would be the one to hear his last dying words. He would also be the one to suggest Vincent to paint. Vincent Van Gogh would be considered the greatest Dutch painter after Rembrandt.


 * [[image:http://www.vincentvangoghart.net/gogh.vegetable-montmartre.small.jpg width="135" height="100" align="left" caption="Vegetable Gardens in Montmartre " link="http://www.vincentvangoghart.net/Vegetable-Gardens-in-Montmartre.html"]] ||

I n 1880 Vincent followed his brother's suggestions and took up painting. For a short period of time he took lessons from Anton Mauve at the Hague. His use of dark tones in colors set him apart from his teacher (and their differences in artistic views). Vincent's work was influenced by Jean-Francois Millet and mostly painted peasants and rural scenes. He was also strongly influenced by Japanese art around the time of 1885-1886. Later on Vincent moved in with his brother Theo in Paris(1886); they shared a house on Montmarte. There he met painters like Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, Bernard, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul Gauguin. It was here he also discovered Impressionism and was fond for its use in light and colors. He especially liked the technique pointillism (where many small dots are applied to the canvas that blend into rich colors only in the eye of the beholder, seeing it from a distance). This technique was incorporated into Van Gogh's own style. It should be known that Van Gogh was a post-impressionist, rather than an impressionist.

In 1888 Vincent left Paris and went to Arles, Bouches-du-Rh France. It was here where he met Paul Gaugin,and they shared in painting and mutual admiration. Yet, their encounter ended in quarrel. It was here Van Gogh suffered a mental breakdown and cut off his left ear, which he gave to a startled prostitute friend. // T he only painting he sold during his lifetime, The Red Vineyard, was created in 1888. It is now on display in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, Russia. //Vincent suffered from depression and mental illness and later on shot himself on July 29th, 1890.
 * [[image:http://www.vincentvangoghart.net/gogh.starry-night.small.jpg width="122" height="100" align="left" caption="The Starry Night" link="http://www.vincentvangoghart.net/starry-night.html"]] ||