Van Gogh rocks! (originally from 2005)

Van Gogh rocks! Have you ever just stopped dead in your tracks in the middle of a bookstore, public building or any place you just happened to be when Vincent Van Gogh jumped right out and grabbed you, forcing you to take notice? I have. And not just a few times, either. In fact, often, when I pull him from my own bookshelf with the intention of just perusing a few pages, I end up sitting for at least an hour immersed in the photocopied images of his rich paintings and reading some of his biography (you know the book—the eternal $9.99 sale price one at Borders and Barnes & Noble—by R Metzger & I F Walther).

Now I’m no professional art critic, but you don’t have to be one in order to admire this man’s art. My favorite painting of his is A Pair of Shoes (late 1886—not the early ’87 version of the same title). It is a simple piece: a brown worn and weathered pair of shoes with tattered and torn shoestrings set on a lighter brown and dirty background.Though it’s not considered one of his greatest, I’m awed by its simplicity and symbolism. I believe this painting reflects a simple truth: that every man (woman, or child) has his own pair of shoes, his own places he’s been, people he’s known, experiences he’s had. This piece reflects the painter’s compassion for all of us who have walked many miles in our own shoes. It respects no one. It depicts a great truth about all of us: that we each—despite all the help along the way—must walk in our own shoes.

Among other things, Van Gogh is of course well-known for his thick layering of paint. This is what I love most about his work. He just throws the shit on! I love the use of color in The Sower With Setting Sun (June 1888 version), but it just wouldn’t be the same without the thick violet (or, violent) strokes of earth. Even better is Still Life: Vase with Twelve Sunflowers (August ’88). My interpretation of this one is that of a controlled rage. It looks like he’s not only just slamming the paint on, but that he’s also directing and honing his rage effortlessly (note the stunning detail of the seeds), proving his masterful supremacy to the genre that (I believe) he created. And by virtue of his mastery over this rage, we are left with the simple flower (even a few)—the symbol of sunshine and cheer. Brilliant!

If you’ve never given Van Gogh a chance, you should. There’s a lot to be had from this dead man. He just laid it all out—his artwork, his love for his brother, and his life in general. In a letter (#571) to his brother, Theo, he says, “My pictures are of no value; though of course they cost me a very great deal, at times even my blood and my brain” ...well, and your life, too pal. But maybe that’s why he was so great.