Vincent Van Gogh Research Paper

Vincent van Gogh was a painter who is well known for cutting off his own ear. He was mentally ill and had various health problems that contributed to his artwork and the way he lived, as well as where he lived. He lived from 1853 to 1890 which was a time of Realism and Impressionism. His art style and subjects were based off of some styles from the time periods subject matter and governments that were developing. He had a handful of popular art, but only after he had passed away. A few selections would be Starry Night, The Potato Eaters, and Crows over a Wheatfield. During van Gogh’s time period, many things were happening. He was born in the Netherlands in 1853, a time of modernization for the Dutch people. As well, his time period was part …show more content…
When wanting to become a minister, he took on the challenge of the entrance exam to the School of Theology in Amsterdam. After a lot of hard work and studying, he refused to take the Latin exam because he thought that Latin was a “dead language” for poor people. He was denied from the school right after. Soon after he took on his art career in Brussels. While going to school, his originality offended his teachers. He taught himself classic technique through copying lessons from a standard academic treatise on drawing. He stopped when he felt he could draw like the masters, and began to draw with his own visions and style. After starting his art career, he attended a school in Brussels where he learned about rudiments of perspective and anatomy. He as well studied at the academic art school at The Hague (Trachtman …show more content…
He began to suffer from fainting spells and seizures. The people of Arles could see the van Gogh was visibly not well and dangerous, so they signed a petition to get him into an Asylum. Before the Asylum, van Gogh had done many dangerous things. Out of anger, he cut off his ear and presented it to a prostitute in a local brothel (“Vincent Van Gogh” 1). As well, when he moved into “the little yellow house” and used his money to buy paint instead of his necessities. Around this time he is also known to have sipped on turpentine and eat paint (“Vincent van Gogh” 1). On May 9th, 1889, Vincent van Gogh was admitted into an asylum in Saint-Remy-de Provence. During his time in asylums, he looked to painting to help him, as the doctors didn’t help him emotionally. The next year, he was transferred to Auvers-sur-Oise. He went to Dr. Paul Gatchet, who agreed to care for him during this time (Trachtman 1). He spent his last two years alive in