Van Gogh
9 yrs ago I got to have one of my childhood dreams come true! I saw The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh for the very first time in NYC. I was at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in 2010.
I walked around the corner and saw it. Tears immediately came to my eyes. I have studied Van Gogh since I was a little girl, even writing research papers on him, specifically studying this painting. Words or a photo can’t do it justice. Its beauty is breathtaking.
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Did you know he painted this while in asylum in less than an hour?! Truly amazing!
I stood there looking at the painting and stared at all the brushstrokes. Each brushstroke representing the emotions he felt. So much movement. So much beauty that was his release of so much pain. I believe God gave that gift to him as a way of dealing with what his words could not express.
Most people don’t know this but Vincent was a deeply religious person. He was a devoted Christian but because he was different he was seen as an outcast. He never fit in. Not even with his family. The only one who truly loved him for who he was, was his brother Theo. That’s where we find out a lot about him and what he was dealing with. He wrote hundreds of letters to his brother and they are compiled in this book that I love.
The Letters of Vincent van Gogh
Penguin Classics
“Few artists’ letters are as self-revelatory as Vincent Van Gogh’s, and the selection included here, spanning the whole of his artistic career, sheds light on every facet of the life and work of this complex and tortured man. Engaging candidly and movingly with his religious struggles, his ill-fated search for love, his intense relationship with his brother Theo and his attacks of mental illness, the letters contradict the popular image of Van Gogh as an anti-social madman and a martyr to art, showing instead that he was capable of great emotional and spiritual depths. Above all, they stand as an intense personal narrative of artistic development and a unique account of the process of creation.
The letters are linked by explanatory biographical passages, revealing Van Gogh’s inner journey as well as the outer facts of his life.”
We can learn so much by looking in the past. His art was his sanity. His release. It gave him the ability to escape and find peace, even for a moment. 3 yrs ago, I was able to take my mom to Paris. We were able to walk by the very apartment where he lived. To walk the streets where he walked. All I could feel was sadness for him because he never truly knew what his art was going to do for others. He was not the man history paints the picture of. I’ve always felt that. Always felt drawn to him and his struggles. We all have our inner demons that we deal with. Art can be such an amazing escape even if for a moment. It can take our pain and turn it into beauty.
Don’t doubt your gift. Don’t discount the importance of art! God was the original artist! He created us in His image. We all have creativity inside of us. We just need to find an avenue to pull it out. 😘
What painting do you love? Who is your favorite artist?
