Vincent Willem Van Gogh

Brief Life History of Vincent Willem

Vincent Willem van Gogh (Dutch: [ˈvɪnsɛnt ˈʋɪləm vɑn ˈɣɔx] 30 March 1853 – 29 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade he created about 2,100 artworks, including around 860 oil paintings, most of them in the last two years of his life. They include landscapes, still lifes, portraits and self-portraits, and are characterised by bold colours and dramatic, impulsive and expressive brushwork that contributed to the foundations of modern art. His suicide at 37 followed years of mental illness and poverty. Artist. Born in Groot-Zundert, Netherlands, in 1869 he began working for art dealers, but in 1877 he studied religion and from 1878 to 1880 he was an evangelist in Belgium. Later he decided to become an artist. He admired the work of Millet and Daumier and his early subjects were peasants. He lived in Brussels and in Netherlands and in February 1886 he moved to Paris where he lived together with his brother, Theo, and encountered Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painting. In Fernand Cormons atelier, he met Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. He also met Emile Bernard, Edgar Degas, Paul Gauguin, Camille Pissarro, and Paul Signac at that time. Brighter palette, flowers, portraits, and scenes of Montmartre, replaced his earlier subject matter and tonalities. In February 1887 he moved to Arles, where he painted in isolation. His first mental breakdown was in December 1888. Nevertheless, he continued to paint. In 1890, he was invited to show with Les Vingt in Brussels, where he sold his first painting. That same year, he was represented at the "Salon des Independants" in Paris. He shot himself on July 27, 1890, and died on July 29 in Auvers-sur-Oise, France.

Photos and Memories (40)

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Family Time Line

Theodorus van Gogh
1822–1885
Anna Cornelia Carbentus
1819–1907
Vincent van Gogh
1852–1852
Vincent Willem Van Gogh
1853–1890
Anna Cornelia van Gogh
1855–1930
Theodorus van Gogh
1857–1891
Elisabeth Huberta van Gogh
1859–1936
Willemina Jacoba Wil van Gogh
1862–1941
Cornelis Vincent van Gogh
1867–1900

Sources (19)

  • Vincent Van Gogh, "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, Births, and Marriages 1980-2014"
  • Vincent Van Gogh, "BillionGraves Index"
  • Vincent Vangogh, "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014"

World Events (8)

1854 · The Crimean War

The Crimean War was fought between Russia and an alliance of Britain, France, Sardinia and Turkey on the Crimean Peninsula. Russia had put pressure on Turkey which threatened British interests in the Middle East.

1858 · The Vision of Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes

Bernadette Soubirous was a young woman that born in poverty on January 7, 1844 in Lourdes, France. She started having visions of a lady that would tell her to do different things such as drink from water that was under a rock. She was also instructed to tell priests to build a church. As time went on she was interrogated by the police and never denied what she saw. People come from all over to Lourdes, France.

1864 · Champs-Élysées  Avenue

Champs-Élysées is over 6,000 feet long and over 200 feet wide. The name is French for Elysian Fields were in Greek mythology was the paradise for the dead heroes. It is one of the oldest avenues in France and is also the location of the Arc de Triomphe. 

Name Meaning

Some characteristic forenames: Vietnamese Anh, Thanh, Hung, Minh, Vinh, Dung, Hue, Huong, Lan, Quang, Tan, Thuy, Hong, Chi, Hang, Ho, Pok, Sang, Bai, Chin, Ching, Chu, Chuan, Dong.

Vietnamese (Vạn): from the Chinese surname 萬, see Wan 1.

Vietnamese (Văn): from the Chinese surnames 文 or 聞, see Wen 2 and 3, and also 5 below.

Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

Possible Related Names

Story Highlight

Memoirs of Vincent Van Gogh's stay in Auvers-sur-Oise. (1956) by Adeline Ravoux (aged 76)

Vincent Van Gogh arrived at our place at the end May 1890; I cannot be more specific on the date from memory. It is claimed that before this he stayed briefly at the hotel Saint Aubin when he arrived …

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