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1853
Vincent van Gogh is born on 30 March in the small village of
Groot-Zundert, Holland to Theodorus Van Gogh (1822-1885) and Anna Cornelia née Carbentus
(1819-1907).
1857
Vincent's brother, Theo, is born on 1 May.
1864
Vincent begins schooling in Zevenbergen. He learns French, English and German and begins
drawing for the first time.
1869
After finishing his schooling, Vincent is apprenticed to Goupil & Cie, art dealers from Paris
with a branch established in the Hague by his uncle Vincent (Uncle "Cent"). Vincent makes
frequent visits to the museums of The Hague.
1872
Vincent spends a good deal of time with his brother, Theo. They begin a lifelong correspondence
which today offers the best means of studying Vincent's opinions, feelings and state of mind.
1873
Vincent is transferred to the London branch of Goupil & Cie. He visits the museums and galleries
and expands his knowledge of art. In the summer, Vincent falls in love with the daughter of the
Mrs. Ursula Loyer, who runs the boarding house where he is
staying. He is rejected and extremely depressed.
1874
Vincent shows little interest in his position at Goupil & Cie and eventually transferred to the
Paris branch. By the end of the year, however, he returns to London.
1875
Vincent's performance at Goupil & Cie deteriorates while, at the same time, his devotion to his
bible studies reach an obsessive level.
1876
After resigning his position in the early spring, Vincent journeys to Ramsgate, England where
he takes a post at a small boarding school. Later in the year Vincent takes a new job as a
teacher and curate with Reverend T. Slade Jones, a Methodist minister. As Vincent's religious
fervour increase, his physical and mental state take a downturn.
1877
Vincent leaves England and takes a temporary job in a bookshop. As with his Goupil & Cie
position, Vincent shows little interest and behaves abrasively toward his colleagues and
clients. Vincent then pursues religious studies in Amsterdam.
1878
Vincent's formal religious studies come to an end, but, determined to pursue a religious
vocation, Vincent travels to the Borinage, a coal-mining district in Belgium. The conditions
for both Vincent and the miners is extremely bad (look to some of
Vincent's etchings from the period for an idea as to the bleakness and oppressively dismal
atmosphere). Vincent reads from the bible to the miners and lives in complete poverty.
1879
His work at the Borinage continues. Vincent devotes everything to the miners, giving them
clothes and food he can ill afford himself. His religious enthusiasm reaches near fanatical
levels and Vincent is relieved of his position by his superiors. Vincent
then moves on to Cuesmes to continue similar work helping the miners. It is at this time,
however, that his religious devotion begins to wane and his interest in painting is renewed.
1880
A turning point in Vincent's life. Vincent abandons his religious pursuits and devotes himself
exclusively to painting the miners and poverty-stricken weavers. Theo begins to financially
support Vincent, a situation that would continue until the end of
Vincent's life. Later in the year, Vincent undertakes some formal studies of anatomy and
perspective at the Academy in Brussels.
1881
Vincent visits Theo in Etten and, later in the year, has his advances rejected by his cousin
Cornelia Adriana Vos-Stricker (known as Kee). Vincent is devastated by this rejection, but
throughout the period also follows his artistic pursuits. He spends
time with the painter, Anton Mauve (1838-1888) who first introduces Vincent to watercolors.
The situation with Kee causes Vincent's mental state to once again deteriorate and his
relationship with his father also begins to crumble.
1882
Vincent meets Clasina Maria Hoornik (known as Sien) and they move in together. Sien is a
prostitute with a five year old daughter and is pregnant with another child. While continuing
his studies and painting with some acquaintances (painters Jan Hendrik
Weissenbruch and George Hendrik Breitner), Vincent's physical state again deteriorates and he
is hospitalized for three weeks for gonorrhoea. Upon his release Vincent begins to experiment
with oils and spends much time painting nature as well as using
Sien and her newborn child as models.
1883
After more than a year together, Vincent ends his relationship with Sien and pursues a life
devoted exclusively to his work. He travels to Drente in northern Holland and paints the bleak
landscape as well as the peasant workers. Later in the year,
Vincent moves to Nuenen to stay with his parents. He sets up a small studio to work and
continues to rely on Theo for support.
1884
While continuing with his work, Vincent begins a relationship with a neighbour's daughter,
Margot Begemann. Both families are opposed to their plan to marry and, in despair, Margot
attempts to poison herself. Vincent is extremely distressed as this
relationship ends, but continues his work and strikes up a friendship with Anton C. Kerssemakers
(1846-1926), a tanner and art enthusiast. They spend much time together, discussing art and
visiting museums.
1885
After the death of his father in March, Vincent continues with his work and, in early spring,
paints what many consider to be his first great work, The Potato Eaters. Vincent expands
his experiments to include a greater variety of colours and becomes extremely interested in
Japanese woodcuts.
1886
Once again, Vincent makes an attempt at more formal training in art at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts,
but he rejects many of the principles he's taught and withdraws. Later in the year Vincent moves
to Paris and lives with Theo. Wishing to continue with some
more formal education in the arts, Vincent submits some of his works to the Antwerp Academy and
is put in a beginner's class. As expected, Vincent doesn't fit in well with the Academy and
leaves.
Another turning point takes place early in the year when Vincent begins studies with Cormon
(1845-1924) at his atelier. It is not so much the training that influences Vincent, but rather
his introduction to his fellow students: John Russell (1858-1931),
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901) and Emile Bernard (1868-1941). Later in the year, Theo,
who is working for Boussod & Valadon managing an art gallery in Montmartre, introduces Vincent
to the works of the Impressionists: Claude Monet, Pierre-August
Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas and Georges Seurat. Their work has a profound influence
on Vincent and his use of colour. Later in the year, Vincent becomes friends with painter,
Paul Gauguin, a turbulent relationship that would later prove to be
another turning point in Vincent's (and Gaugin's) life.
1887
Throughout the year, Vincent continues his work in Paris. He frequents cafes with other
painters and argues about art with Bernard and Gauguin. Over the course of the year, Vincent
experiments with some different styles, including Japonaiseries and
pointillism.
1888
A pivotal point in Van Gogh's life. Vincent leaves Paris in February and moves to Arles in the
south. At first the bad, winter weather prevents Vincent from working, but once spring arrives
Vincent begins painting the flowering Provence landscapes.
Vincent eventually moves into the "Yellow House", a dwelling he has rented where he will paint,
and from which he hopes to establish an artists' community. Vincent is extremely productive
during this period when he paints a number of seaside landscapes
(in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer) as well as many of his most famous portraits (including his series
of the postman, Joseph Roulin, and his family).
Throughout the year, Vincent continues to paint some of his best work. He anxiously awaits the
arrival of his friend, Paul Gauguin, who he dreams of helping him to set up the artists'
community. Gauguin finally arrives in October and moves in with
Vincent in his "Yellow House" This proves to be an extremely rewarding and productive time for
Vincent and Gauguin, though a tense and often turbulent one in which they would endlessly
argue about art. As the weather worsens, so too does their
relationship, which is finally destroyed on 23 December when Vincent is supposed to have
attacked Gauguin with a razor. Immediately after the failed attack, Vincent loses all reason
and cuts off his left earlobe. He then wraps it in newspaper and presents it to a prostitute at
the local brothel he frequented. He is then hospitalized and
shortly afterward Theo arrives from Paris to make arrangements for Vincent's care.
1889
Vincent begins to improve in the new year and leaves the hospital on 7 January. During the
early part of the year, Vincent's mental state fluctuates wildly. At times he is completely
calm and coherent; at others he suffers from hallucinations and
delusions. Vincent continues to work sporadically from his "yellow house", but the increasing
frequency of his mental breakdowns prompt him, with Theo's help, to enter the Saint Paul-de-
Mausole mental asylum at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.
The year progresses with varying recoveries and lapses in Vincent's mental state. When able,
Vincent continues his paintings of landscapes (his famous series of olive groves and cypresses)
from the asylum, but is forced to stop when his attacks (in which
he tries to poison himself by swallowing his own paints) return. Since these attacks often
occur while Vincent is outdoors, he confines himself indoors and begins to do a series
paintings based on the works of other artists he admires (specifically Millet and Delacroix).
Ironically, as Vincent's mental state steadily deteriorates throughout the course of the year,
his work is finally beginning to receive recognition in the art community. His Starry Night
over the Rhone and Irises are exhibited at the Salon des
Indépendants in September and in November he is invited to exhibit six of his works by Octave
Maus (1856-1919), secretary of the Belgian artist group, Les XX.
Vincent begins to work out of doors once again, but the year concludes with one of his worst
attacks, in which he again tries to poison himself, and he is once more incapacitated.
1890
1890 begins much like the previous year with Vincent making various recoveries and breakdowns.
As before, he continues to work when he can and, as his life draws to a close, his works gain
more and more recognition. On 31 January Theo's wife, Jo, gives
birth to a son who they name Vincent Willhem. After a serious attack in February lasting two
months, it's decided that Vincent should move closer to Theo and be put under the care of Dr.
Paul Gachet. Vincent takes a drastic turn for the better during the
course of this move and arrives in Paris looking fit and well (in fact, even more fit than his brother who had been suffering from ill health for years). In May Vincent moves to Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris and, while under the care of Dr.
Gachet, begins to paint with incredible energy, producing more than 80 paintings in the last two months remaining to him.
June: Vincent continues to produce some of his best work and his mental and physical health improve drastically. Dr. Gachet feels that Vincent has made a complete recovery, and Vincent spends a great deal of time with Theo, Jo and his new nephew.
To many, it would appear that Vincent was finally happy.
July: As conditions for Vincent improved, they took a turn for the worse for Theo, who was experiencing financial difficulties and who was troubled at his new son's ill health. Vincent visits Theo on 6 July and is devastated at the state of Theo's
condition. Vincent continues to work in the weeks to follow, but his mental state finally plummets, perhaps owing to his regarding himself as a burden to Theo and his family and for being responsible for their poor financial state and troubles. On 27
July Vincent goes for a walk and shoots himself in the chest with a pistol. He manages
to stagger home late in the evening, but tells no one of his condition. The wounded Vincent is
eventually found in his lodgings and a doctor is summoned. The bullet cannot be removed and
Theo is called for.
Vincent's last hours are much like the last two years of his life--varying from complete mental
anguish to seeming contentment. After attempting suicide, Vincent spends the little time he has
left sitting up in bed and smoking a pipe, all the while with
Theo at his side. Near the end, Theo climbs into bed with Vincent and cradles his head in his
arms. Vincent says: "I wish I could pass away like this."
Vase with Twelve Sunflowers -
Arles: August, 1888 |
Vincent dies early the next morning on 29 July. The funeral takes place shortly thereafter and
his coffin is covered with dozens of sunflowers, which he loved so much.
1891
Theo never recovers from the death of his beloved brother and his health takes a turn for the
worse. He dies on 25 July at Utrecht.
1914
Theo's body is exhumed and he is buried in a grave next to Vincent in Auvers-sur-Oise.
1962
The Vincent van Gogh Foundation is established in Amsterdam. The Foundation is devoted to
acquiring Vincent's paintings, etchings and letters.
1973
The Van Gogh Museum is built by the Dutch government. The museum holds hundreds of Vincent's
works as well as a huge archive containing letters and documents.
The biography is "Courtesy of David Brooks and the
Vincent van Gogh Information Gallery"
I like to thank David Brooks for his kind permission to let me use the biography.
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