Nienke Bakker

Hans Luijten

Leo Jansen

A remarkable selection covering all aspects of Vincent van Gogh's life and offering valuable new insights into the creative process behind his many famous works.

A Life in Letters

Vincent Van Gogh

Vincent van Goghs letters have long been prized as some of the most valuable documents in the world of art. Not only do they throw light on Van Goghs own complex and intriguing character, they enlighten the whole creative process as seen through his eyes. Here we can observe Van Goghs thoughts and opinions at first hand, as well as his close ties with his brother Theo, his sometimes troubled relationships with friends and fellow artists, his personal doubts and fears, and above all his overriding passion for his art. This is not only an immense treasure trove of biographical and art-historical information, it provides a lasting pleasure as a personal written testimony to a life consecrated to art. Vincent van Gogh: A Life in Letters belongs on the shelves of every reader in search of self-revelatory documents of one of the greatest creative minds.

Vincent van Gogh: A Life in Letters

a life in letters

Vincent van Gogh

Simon Kelly

Maite van Dijk

Abigail Yoder

Sowing the Seeds of Modern Art

Jean-François Millet

Cornelia Homburg

Louis van Tilborgh

Claire Guitton

Tsukasa Kodera

"All my work is based to some extent on Japanese art." -Vincent van Gogh Vincent van Gogh's (1853-1890) encounter with Japanese ukiyo-e prints during his time in Paris was decisive for the direction that his art would take in the years to come. He enthusiastically assembled a collection of the prints with the idea of dealing in them, and soon was captivated by their colorful and cheerful imagery and style, which began to exert a dramatic influence on his own work. Gradually this enchanted world became his main artistic reference point. From then on, he positioned himself as an artist in the Japanese tradition in order to gain a reputation with the avant-garde of the day. This gorgeous publication offers a detailed reassessment of the impact Japanese printmaking had on Van Gogh's creative output. Featuring essays by the world's leading Van Gogh experts, this book details the ways in which the artist constructed his understanding of a Japanese aesthetic and his utopian ideal of a so-called primitive society, and incorporated these into his own vision and practice. The size, nature, and importance of Van Gogh's own collection of Japanese prints are also explored. Lavish illustrations include oil paintings and drawings by Van Gogh as well as a selection of the Japanese works that so captured his imagination.

Van Gogh and Japan

Marten de Vries

Cornelis Kruyskamp

Klaas Heeroma

Jacob Wijbrand Muller

Gerrit J. Boekenoogen

Reinder “van der” Meulen

Jacobus Heinsius

Johannes A. N. Knuttel

F. “de” Tollenaere

Walter “de” Clerck

Willem “de” Vreese

Adriaan Beets

Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal

Sjraar Van Heugten

Chris Stolwijk

By juxtaposing these other artists' works with many of Vincent's most powerful and best-loved paintings, the exhibition reveals a fascinating dialogue between one artistic genius and his art historical predecessors.".

Exploring the Artist's Inner World

Van Gogh's Imaginary Museum

Chris Uhlenbeck

Louis Van Tilborgh

Van Gogh et le Japon

Marije Vellekoop

Laura Prins

Being ill isn t a cause for joy, I nevertheless have no right to complain about it, for it seems to me that nature sees to it that illness is a means of getting us back on our feet, of healing us, rather than an absolute evil. --Vincent van Gogh to John Peter Russell, Saint-Remy-de-Provence, February 1, 1890"

Van Gogh and His Illness

On the Verge of Insanity

Marie Robert

Isolde Pludermacher

Richard Thomson

Guy Cogeval

From the scandalous Olympia by Édouard Manet to Degas's The Absinthe Drinker, from Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Edvard Munch's forays into brothels to the bold figures and caricature portraits of Georges Rouault, Kees Van Dongen, and Pablo Picasso, this book foregrounds how the shadowy domain of prostitution played a central role in the development of modern painting. In nine chapters, readers roam the streets of Paris and head into its maisons closes and private boudoirs, where courtesans--often actresses, singers, or dancers--were looked after by rich protectors. These famous paintings, sculptures, lithographs, sketches, and press clippings are given context within the moral framework of a time when prostitution was considered--depending on the point of view--as an unavoidable or enticing evil. The catalogue also demonstrates how the works of art are intrinsically bound to the literary works of the period, in which Balzac, Baudelaire, and Zola negotiated parallel questions of presentation and representation, reverie and reality. Comprehensive appendices include a complete list of works featured in the exhibition organized by medium, a selected bibliography, and an index of names. The book powerfully evokes the ambivalent place held by prostitutes in the midst of nascent modernity--from the splendours of the demimondaines to the miseries of the working girl pierreuses.

Images of Prostitution in France 1850-1910

Splendours and Miseries

Renske Suijver

Renske Cohen Tervaert

A magnificently illustrated overview of Van Gogh's life, legacy, and art, from early drawings through later, iconic paintings

His Life in Art

Ann Dumas

Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) is one of the greatest figures in Western art. Revered for his bold, expressionist paintings, he is also admired as a prodigious and eloquent letter writer. His correspondence displays a remarkable literary gift and an ability to communicate his ideas and feelings about nature, art, and life in direct, emotive language. Illustrated with works of art and letters that demonstrate Van Gogh’s abiding preoccupations--the role of color in painting, the cycles of nature, and friendship, for example--this fascinating book explores the correspondence as a self-portrait of the artist and the man. The letter-sketches that Van Gogh used to describe completed works or those in progress are reproduced here alongside the finished paintings or drawings, providing a unique insight into his artistic development. Drawing on new and extensive research, leading authorities on Van Gogh reveal how the letters enhance and shape our view of this modern master.

The Artist and His Letters

The Real Van Gogh

Nienke Bakker

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