Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh, “The Sower (After Millet)”, 1881, Pencil, Pen and Brush and Ink, Watercolor on Paper, Van Gough Museum, Amsterdam

“The Sower” was a subject that Vincent van Gogh keep coming back many times in his career. Peasant imagery was of great importance to Van Gogh, who began his career by copying prints of Millet, Corot and other members of the Barbizon School. Van Gogh was a particular admirer of French artist Jean-François Millet, recognizing him as a leading artist.

Although Van Gogh was born into a middle-class family, he came from the small town of Nuenen where agriculture and therefore hard labor was a prevalent industry. Van Gogh later worked in other areas of great poverty. He developed a strong sympathy and respect for the peasants that he saw, and was socialist in his opinions and outlook. Van Gogh’s depictions of peasants remained similar in concept to those of Millet, in that he gave his figures an eternalizing spirit that emphasized their long history rather than using his paintings to advocate change.

Smoke

Photographer Unknown, (Smoke)

“There may be a great fire in our soul, yet no one ever comes to warm himself at it, and the passers-by see only a wisp of smoke.”
― Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh

Vincent Van Gogh, “Avenue with Flowering Chestnut Trees at Arles”, 1889, Oil on Canvas, 72.5 x 92 cm, Private Collection

Vincent van Gogh painted his “Avenue with Flowering Chestnut Trees at Arles” in 1889. The painting’s merit lies primarily in the style, which, just as in the case of most of his other park views, is impressionist in nature. That free and lively manner of painting, here given an individual interpretation, was only one of the styles used by Van Gogh, but certainly not the least important. At the same time, Vincent von Gogh was trying to secure a place among the avant-garde by following in the decorative path marked out by Claude Monet and Gauguin.