Vincent Van Gogh was a troubled
man. He suffered from severe bouts of
depression and loneliness. A smoker and
a drinker of absinthe, he is also believed to have suffered from the
hallucinogenic effects of turpentine, a chemical found in many oil paints
which, if ingested, can cause serious side effects. Artists of the time who would commonly rest
the tip of their paintbrushes in their mouths for meditation while painting
could run the risk of acquiring turpentine poisoning. Although much debate surrounds the cause of
Van Gogh's mental illness, we do know that he was in fact ill—and Van Gogh knew
it, too. Shortly after cutting off his
own ear (which he then wrapped in newspaper and handed to a prostitute at a
nearby brothel), he was admitted to a hospital, where his condition continued
to deteriorate. When he was finally
released, Van Gogh, knowing he was not well, checked himself into an asylum in
Saint-Rémy, where he would spend the next year of his life.
From this asylum, Van Gogh painted
some of his most memorable paintings.
Perhaps their celebrity comes partially from the significance of the
artist having painted them while a patient in a mental hospital; with that
context no doubt emerge special meanings and added, psychological
interest. The study almost becomes
subjective when trying to appreciate such artwork, but for their sheer artistic
value we will take a look.
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