Vincent van Gogh–one of the 19th century’s most brilliant artists–will forever be remembered as the Dutchman who cut off his ear. But this incident only underscores the passion that consumed him–a passion that, when he took up painting at age 27, infused his work. Whether painting a portrait, a landscape, or a still life, Van Gogh sought to capture the vibrant spirit of his subject. It didn’t matter that others found his work too unconventional. Van Gogh persevered. And as he moved from the cold climate of Holland to balmy southern France, he pioneered a new technique and style.
In a career spanning only a decade, Van Gogh painted many great works, yet fame eluded him. This lack of recognition increased his self-doubts and bitter disappointments. Today, however, Van Gogh stands as a giant among artists.


From the Hardcover edition.

Author: Jan Greenberg, Sandra Jordan
Paperback: 144 pages
Company: Yearling (2003-01-14) (2003-01-14)
ISBN: 0440419174
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"Brad" explores the ups and downs of van Gogh's life and art in this colorful report, featuring Brad's funny cartoons alongside reproductions of classic paintings like Starry Night.

Author: Joan Holub
Mass Market Paperback: 32 pages
Company: Grosset & Dunlap (2001-10-01) (2001-10-01)
ISBN: 0448425211
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'Conversations with Van Gogh' is an imagined conversation with this remarkable figure. But while the conversation is imagined, Van Gogh's words are not; they are all authentically his. ' Vincent van Gogh is best known for two things - his sunflowers and his ear-cutting. But there are many other ways of knowing this remarkable son of a Dutch pastor, who left his chill homeland for the sunshine of Arles in the South of France; and left us over a thousand frank letters of struggle and joy, to help us glimpse his inner world. Vincent came late to painting after spending time in London trying to be a Christian missionary. And though he is now amongst the most famous artists on earth, in his day, no one saw him coming - apart from one French art critic called Aurier. It is possible he never sold one of his paintings in his life time. When he discovered the sun in Arles, he also discovered energy. Yellow for him was the colour of hope, and in his last two years he painted almost a canvass a day. But hope ran out on July 27th , 1890 when he shot himself, aged 37. He was at this time six months out of a mental institution, where perhaps he experienced his greatest calm. Vincent compared himself to a stunted plant; damaged by the emotional frost of his childhood. 'Speaking with Vincent - which he insists on being called - was a privilege,' says Simon Parke. 'He's endlessly fascinating, contradictory, moving, funny, insightful and tragic. There's a fury in him; but also a great kindness. He found harmony in human relationships elusive; his love life was a painful shambles. But with colour, he was a harmonic genius, and he has much to say about this. And here's the thing: for a man who killed himself - he died in the arms of his brother on July 29th - spending time with him was never anything but life-affirming.'

Author: Vincent Van Gogh, Simon Parke
Hardcover: 144 pages
Company: White Crow Books (2010-04-01)
ISBN: 1907661301
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Published on the centenary of his death, this is the first comprehensive biography of Vincent Van Gogh in over 25 years. It glows with new information. The author wanted his book to shed new light on his subject, and it does.

We learn much of Van Gogh's early years: his conflict about becoming an artist, his strong spiritual beliefs and the failed love affairs that deepened his depression and despair.

"A lucid, balanced biography. Sweetman's understated study makes the artist's story and hard-won genius particularly moving." (Kirkus Reviews)

Author: David Sweetman
Paperback: 400 pages
Company: Touchstone (1991-10-15)
ISBN: 0671743384
List Price: $16.00
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A literary classic, The Letters of Vincent van Gogh Captures the voice of one of the most beloved and important artists of all time.

Though Vincent van Gogh is often thought of as a mad genius, in The Letters of Vincent van Gogh the thoughtful, effervescent, and sensitive man is revealed to readers through his own voice.

This collection of letters, arranged in chronological order and written to Vincent's closest confidant, his brother and art dealer, Theo, provide a riveting narrative of van Gogh's life. The letters expose Vincent's creative process; his joy and inspiration derived from literature, Japanese art, and nature; as well as his many romantic disappointments and constant poverty. Also documented are Vincent's close relationships with fellow artists, especially Paul Gauguin. Van Gogh's tender and often ebullient letters provide a sharp contrast to the devastating and frequently violent mental breakdowns that plagued and eventually destroyed him.

Collected and edited by art historian Mark Roskill, this volume also includes a chronology, a short memoir by van Gogh's sister-in-law that fills in many of the blanks of Vincent's early years, and reproductions of selected artwork discussed in van Gogh's letters.

An epistolary classic, The Letters of Vincent van Gogh is not just an important historical collection but also a captivating treasure.

Paperback: 352 pages
Company: Touchstone (2008-11-18) (2008-11-18)
ISBN: 1416580867
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Author: Julius Meier-Graefe
Paperback: 160 pages
Company: Dover Publications (1987-01-01)
ISBN: 0486252531
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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith galvanized readers with their astonishing Jackson Pollock: An American Saga, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for biography, a book acclaimed for its miraculous research and overwhelming narrative power. Now Naifeh and Smith have written another tour de force—an exquisitely detailed, compellingly readable, and ultimately heartbreaking portrait of creative genius Vincent van Gogh.

Working with the full cooperation of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Naifeh and Smith have accessed a wealth of previously untapped materials. While drawing liberally from the artist’s famously eloquent letters, they have also delved into hundreds of unpublished family correspondences, illuminating with poignancy the wanderings of Van Gogh’s troubled, restless soul. Naifeh and Smith bring a crucial understanding to the larger-than-life mythology of this great artist—his early struggles to find his place in the world; his intense relationship with his brother Theo; his impetus for turning to brush and canvas; and his move to Provence, where in a brief burst of incandescent productivity he painted some of the best-loved works in Western art.

The authors also shed new light on many unexplored aspects of Van Gogh’s inner world: his deep immersion in literature and art; his erratic and tumultuous romantic life; and his bouts of depression and mental illness.

Though countless books have been written about Van Gogh, and though the broad outlines of his tragedy have long inhabited popular culture, no serious, ambitious examination of his life has been attempted in more than seventy years. Naifeh and Smith have re-created Van Gogh’s life with an astounding vividness and psychological acuity that bring a completely new and sympathetic understanding to this unique artistic genius whose signature images of sunflowers and starry nights have won a permanent place in the human imagination.

Author: Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
Hardcover: 976 pages Deckle Edge
Company: Random House (2011-10-18) (2011-10-18)
ISBN: 0375507485
List Price: $40.00
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The book captures the atmosphere of the Paris of the Post-Impressionists and reconstructs the development of Van Gogh's art.

Author: Irving Stone
Paperback: 512 pages
Company: Plume (1984-06-01) (1984-06-01)
ISBN: 0452262496
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Author: Albert J. Lubin
Paperback: 322 pages ISBN13: 9780306807268, Condition: New, Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Company: Da Capo Press (1996-08-22)
ISBN: 0306807262
List Price: $18.95
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Van Gogh's brother Theo was his confidant and companion, and, in his letters to him, Van Gogh reveals himself as artist and man. Even more than if he had purposely intended to tell his life story, Van Gogh's letters lay bare his deepest feelings, as well as his everyday concerns and his views of the world of art.

Paperback: 480 pages
Company: Plume (1995-09-01) (1995-09-01)
ISBN: 0452275040
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