One of the joys of blogging is that readers, however few, can be drawn into your other interests even if they only visit for ill-informed second-rate political commentary. I've always had a keen interest in art history in general and a particular passion for Vincent Van Gogh so was saddened to see that his 1890 oil 'The Wheat Fields' failed to sell at auction at Sotheby's last night. There were expectations that the painting might fetch $35m but in the end it failed to even reach its undisclosed reserve or attract a bid over $25m.The painting had been expected to generate lots of interest because it's one of the Van Gogh's with a claim on being the last one he ever painted. Vincent shot himself in the chest with a revolver in a wheat field outside Auvers-sur-Oise on 27 July 1890, north of Paris and then struggled back to the inn he'd been staying at - he died in his brother Theo's arms two days later, reputedly with the words "La tristesse durera toujours" ("the sadness will last forever").
Having read more than my fair share about Van Gogh it's always frustrating that the real Vincent remains hidden behind the mythologised one, the hot-headed, self-mutilating mad man full of eccentricities and impulsive brushwork etc. Although the facts of his death might reinforce that stereotype you needn't read too much before you realise that he was an infinitely more complex character, a profoundly kind man, deeply spiritual (at a time when that was a less trite observation) and a very gifted writer too - I'd recommend anyone to his collection of letters written almost entirely to his brother Theo.
Labels: art
5 Comments:
Bit splodgy though isn`t it. Try Benvenuto Cellino`s journal the earliest prose autobiography of all its an astonishing glimpse into a distant life and the most amazing thing is that the pieces he worries about are often still there to be seen today.
I saw some of his stuff in Florence a few years ago.
Newmania a man of culture eh? What would Bob Piper make of it..!
Haven't read Cellini since school but did enjoy it. If you have a taste for that sort of thing then read Vasari - the definititve source of almost ecerything we read about renaissance art...
Newmania a man of culture eh? What would Bob Piper make of it..!
Mostly English culture , I have a degree in Eng Lit and in the blogasphere have a constant sense of being "In my depth " on general cultural matters.Mind you it was a while ago
my daughter's favorite artist since she was wee.
Lady Mcleod,
Thanks for stopping by. I'm sure your daughter's already found the wealth of Van Gogh material available online but in case not the Van Gogh Gallery is well worth a visit.
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