Vincent Van Gogh

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

Vincent Van Gogh once said that "happiness... it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort" (Van Gogh). He displays that to get to the point of happiness one must reach their goal, when that goal is reached happiness will follow.

During Van Gogh's life, he demonstrates vast courage by pursuing his life goal of becoming a painter. An example of Vincent's courage was shown when he said the following quote, "As we advance in life it becomes more and more difficult, but in fighting the difficulties the inmost strength of the heart is developed." (Van Gogh). Through Vincent's actions of dedicating himself and his time to the Holy Father he showed courage by standing up for what he believed in and what he thought was right. Vincent Van Gogh didn't have the easiest life; He was one of six children. His mother encouraged him to paint, this is one was he expressed his feeling and emotions. In one of his paintings "The Potato Eaters" he shows lots of emotion by the choice of colors, are dark and poor. The people are posed sitting at a table peeling potatoes. Vincent Van Gogh was born on March 30,1853,at Groot-Zundert in the province of Brabant,Holland, Vincent Willem Van Gogh was the son of a Protestant minister, Theodorus Van Gogh.On July 27, 1890, he shot himself in a lonely field and died the morning of July 29, 1890.

Night Cafe

Vincent's paintings portrayed his emotions and how he saw the world around him. Although his life wasn't the easiest he still managed to go to school when he was older to obtain a knowledge for the world of art. "Even the knowledge of my own fallibility cannot keep me from making mistakes. Only when I fall do I get up again." (Van Gogh). Vincent hit many bumps in the road with his paintings. Throughout his life when Vincent hit one of his low points he always got back up and tried a different style of art. Van Gogh's persistence with his artwork portrays the amount of drive he has and courage, even if something didn't work out he had the inspiration to keep moving forward. Although Van Gogh had a troubling childhood, he is the mere example of inspiration to individuals. No matter what he kept moving forward with his artwork, and expressed his feelings through his paintings. Vincent Van Gogh is open-minded and tried new styles of paintings. Van Gogh's inspiration for his artwork came from his family and the natural surroundings around him. "For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream" (Van Gogh). Van Gogh tends to live in the moment and enjoy life to its fullest. He doesn't live with and certainty of the world, but his spontaneous behavior truly was what made him special.

Potato Eaters

Van Gogh's inspiration leads him to great accomplishments because he follows his heart. His inspiration guides him to fulfilling his dreams of becoming an artist. Van Gogh acquired faith in himself as he never gave up until he reached his accomplishment. “I am still far from being what I want to be, but with God's help I shall succeed.” (Van Gogh). This quote explains how Van Gogh has a high self motivation, and always sees room for improvement. Van Gogh seems level-headed, with the drive to always excel in what he is passionate for. The passage "But with God's help I shall succeed" explains Van Gogh's number one inspiration, God. Life can come in unexpected ways, sometimes for the worse but with faith, courage, and persistence there is nothing that can bring someone down.

Wheat Field with Crows

Vincent Van Gogh possessed courage and was open-minded to many different styles of art work. Courage is when you can face your fears and get over the hurtle in life that is pulling you back. Vincent had many things in his life that he had to overcome. He was also open-minded to going out into the world to find different styles of paintings, looking for things he could change or add to his art to make them better. He added many different things to his artwork, such as color and texture. Van Gogh possesses courage and open-mindedness; this is what made him a hero. He was a hero to most because of how he expressed his art. He showed great compassion and hurt through his paintings. He painted what he saw in the real world. An example of one of his pieces was "The Potato Eaters." He painted their faces and emotions so deeply, to express how they honestly felt. Another example was one of his most famous pieces called "Starry Night." He painted this outside of a café in Paris where he was staying with his brother Theo. Vincent Van Gogh helped others by helping himself. When he painted he showed the compassion he had for the world around him. Some painters painted the sky, landscape and happy things. Vincent painted both, things that were happy with color and things with no color. Some of his most famous pieces are of himself, he never smiled. Vincent went to different schools to find different styles of paintings and techniques of art. He didn't have the easiest life but he had courage to pursue his dream of becoming a painter. Although he didn't profit from his work, he still because famous for them. Vincent tried to sell some of his art when he was alive but it didn't go as he expected. Only after he died did people start to buy his paintings. Van Gogh inspires me and others by his courage and his open-mindedness. He showed people that even if you grew up poor and have lots of brothers and, it’s still possible to accomplish your dreams. He inspires people to go after what they want and to not give up. Vincent Van Gogh encouraged others to always try and to never give up, to pursue your dream and even when you fall down, to just get right back up and to just keep going.

Works Consulted:

"Vincent Van Gogh." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2nd ed. Vol. 15. Detroit: Gale, 2004.427-429. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 30 Mar. 2011.

STOLWIJK, CHRIS. "Van Gogh, Vincent." Europe 1789-1914: Encyclopedia of the Age of Industry and Empire. Ed. John Merriman and Jay Winter. Vol. 5. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2006. 2399-2402. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 30 Mar. 2011.

"Van Gogh, Vincent (1853-1890)." UXL Biographies. Online ed. Detroit: UXL, 2003. Student Resource Center - Gold. Gale. DEL NORTE HIGH SCHOOL. 30 Mar. 2011

"van Gogh, Vincent." UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. Ed. Laura B. Tyle. Vol. 10. Detroit: UXL, 2003. 1859-1862. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 30 Mar. 2011.