Never Sold a Painting in his Lifetime
Vincent van Gogh:
"I'd like to show by my work what such an eccentric, such a nobody, has in his heart"
How a genius feels:
"I'm a nonentity, an eccentric, an unpleasant person"
March 30th is the birthday of Vincent van Gogh, born in Holland in 1853, a famous painter and also great letter-writer.
His letters were lively, engaging, and passionate; they also frequently reflect his struggles with bipolar disorder.
He wrote:
"What am I in the eyes of most people — a nonentity, an eccentric, or an unpleasant person — somebody who has no position in society and will never have; in short, the lowest of the low. All right, then — even if that were absolutely true, then I should one day like to show by my work what such an eccentric, such a nobody, has in his heart."
He wrote thousands of letters to his brother Theo over the course of his life.
Theo's widow published the van Gogh's letters to her husband in 1913.
Image source: Vincent van Gogh's 1890 painting At Eternity's Gate. Wikipedia, public domain.
Vincent van Gogh:
"I'd like to show by my work what such an eccentric, such a nobody, has in his heart"
How a genius feels:
"I'm a nonentity, an eccentric, an unpleasant person"
March 30th is the birthday of Vincent van Gogh, born in Holland in 1853, a famous painter and also great letter-writer.
His letters were lively, engaging, and passionate; they also frequently reflect his struggles with bipolar disorder.
He wrote:
"What am I in the eyes of most people — a nonentity, an eccentric, or an unpleasant person — somebody who has no position in society and will never have; in short, the lowest of the low. All right, then — even if that were absolutely true, then I should one day like to show by my work what such an eccentric, such a nobody, has in his heart."
He wrote thousands of letters to his brother Theo over the course of his life.
Theo's widow published the van Gogh's letters to her husband in 1913.
- Plato Greek author and philosopher in Athens (427 BC - 347 BC)
- Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.
Image source: Vincent van Gogh's 1890 painting At Eternity's Gate. Wikipedia, public domain.
