Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

Thanks, Muddy, for seeing it like that.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

This has been such an interesting discussion, what with Harbal's scepticism and Muddy's expertise. Thank you both, and others on this thread, for an enjoyable read. And thanks, of course, Muddy for the video link, what an amazing story behind this painting!

I do hope his spirit is out there somewhere, aware of the great success of his paintings.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

If you had visited the gallery in Amsterdam, that only showed his paintings, you would see how much his mental problems were expressed in his work. The day I was there, myself & about 5 other people were wiping tears from their eyes & others said " He must have been very angry/ depressed when he painted that one"
I would think that the sunflowers were painted when his mind was less tormented, because like the rest of us his feelings must have been better on different occasions!
Believe me, there were some paintings where you would have to be blind if you didn't note the despair that he was feeling.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

Gosh Twink, that was clearly a very emotional visit for you. It has so often been said that some of the best creativity is born of a tormented mind.

I had a friend many years ago who suffered from bi-polar. When she was on her meds, she could function normally, and people who didn't know her would have no idea of her internal struggles. Problem was when she felt better, she'd always come off the meds, thinking she didn't need them any more, with the inevitable downward spiral this brought about. She was a poet, and some of best work was written when she was at her lowest ebb. She was aware of this and it caused her despair to acknowledge that in order to reach her creative heights, she had to plunge to her lowest mental depths.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

I don't really know how skilled an artist Van Gogh was, but I don't see any reason to think his despair was of a quality any higher than that of anyone else suffering from mental illness and experiencing despair. Why are we giving him so much praise for not being quite right in the head?

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

Well some people are capable of talking themselves into an emotional state, especially when they have been told the appropriate emotional state beforehand.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

I believe that people with tormented minds have a need to be able to express their feelings
Most people will talk if they are feeling down, but those who have mental problems often find a different way to express them. These people often leave something, to say how they feel, and perhaps we can all learn if we try to understand what their talents are saying.

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

I actually knew very little about VanGogh, apart from the fact that he had cut off his ear.. and lets be fair lots of people now have their bodies pierced, so at the time I had no knowledge of his mental state but I still felt that some of his paintings were sad, ugly or angry so I asked the gallery why. They gave me a booklet that explained, but this was after I had felt the emotions they portrayed!
I don't know why, but some art pieces say more to me than " I would look good in your lounge" so perhaps visiting galleries has taught me how to appreciate them more!

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

I don't like a lot of his work, but he was able to paint. Nobody is suggesting that his mental problems made his work better, but his feelings were made very clear by what & how he painted them. To me his work is like having a look into his diary, when he painted the picture, because it makes me question why somebody would paint it and make it so harsh or more depressing.
If you don't have an appreciation of art & the people who create it, perhaps you will never look at it as I do.... so can we just leave it at that?

Re: Van Gogh farmhouse

Yes, it is true that I can't tell the mental state of a person by the way they paint flowers. And yes, we can leave it at that.