Empty beds of Van Gogh

Bedroom in Arles, 1888, Van Gogh Museum

Empty beds of Van Gogh. In this bedroom, Van Gogh wanted to see in the same bed the woman he loved, in the other – a friend, Paul Gauguin. Dream came true partially and briefly. It is believed that Van Gogh was crazy. It is believed that he was a genius. Neither this nor that his compatriots saw on time. Although some oddities in his behavior were evident. He rented his four-wing apartment for 15 francs a month (one franc in those years was worth about 50 cents) and bought furniture for 300 francs. A strange attitude to money, whom Van Gogh never had: a furnished room in a hotel cost five francs. But the occasional small inheritance allowed him to realize a dream. And in May 1888, Van Gogh got a small workshop in Arles, southern France, where he had fled from his uncomprehending Parisian artists and critics.

Third version, end September 1889. Oil on canvas, 57.5 x 74 cm, Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Yellow four-square outbuilding on Lamartine was destroyed during the Second World War, now on this place stands a regular house. In one of the four rooms Vincent settled a bedroom. In October, everything was ready, and he decided to draw a “Van Gogh’s bedroom in Arles.” “The whole thing is in the coloring – he wrote to his brother Theo, – simplifying which I attach more style to objects, so that they suggest a rest and sleep”

1. Bed

1. BED. Van Gogh bought furniture for 300 francs, inherited from his uncle, which his brother Theo sent to him. “I bought – wrote Van Gogh to Theo – not iron, but local wood, double beds. They give the impression of something solid, sustainable and peaceful. “Wanting to convey the image of comfort, Van Gogh even thought to depict a naked woman on a bed or put next to it a baby cradle, but gave up the idea.

2. Yellow

2. YELLOW. Van Gogh researchers believe that he took Digitalin – medicine from epilepsy, which causes significant changes in color perception: all the surrounding reality is colored green and yellow.

3. Couple of chairs

3. Couple of chairs. Paired subjects (two doors, two pillows, two portraits, two prints) for Vincent were a symbol of peace, balance, dispelled the feeling of loneliness. Beds were also two, Van Gogh awaited arrival of Paul Gauguin, along with him, he planned to organize a brotherhood guild of artists. At first everything was fine: artists friends painted together, went to cafes and brothels, but soon began to clash. Disputes reached these tantrums, in which Van Gogh fell, realizing that dream of brotherhood became a utopia.

4. Closed shutters

4. Closed shutters, according to Van Gogh, brought him a sense of security. He rarely opened them.

5. Table with washing accessories

5. Table with washing accessories for the artist symbolizes a simple and healthy lifestyle.

6. Paintings on the wall

Paintings on the wall. Third version, end September 1889. Oil on canvas, 57.5 x 74 cm, Musée d’Orsay, Paris

6. Paintings on the wall. These works are by Van Gogh himself. On the far wall – “Boulders and Oak” (Houston Museum of Fine Arts). On the right wall shown portrait of two buddies of Van Gogh: local artist Eugene Bosch (France, the Musée d’Orsay) and Paul-Eugène Milliet, second lieutenant in the third regiment of the Zouaves (Holland Museum KrollerMyuller). Below them are two Japanese prints. Van Gogh at the time was very passionate about Japanese art.

7. Thick smear (impasto)

7. Thick smear (impasto). “My smears have no system – Van Gogh wrote. – I put them on the canvas with uneven brush strokes and leave as it is. In some places, it turns pastosity, some places are not painted over, there is unfinished space, then follow corrections, rude, but as a result, in my opinion, get exciting enough impression … to cause frustration among people with preconceived notions about the technology. “Shadows in the picture are missing, and the “color flatness imposed as on Japanese prints,” – commented on his style Van Gogh in a letter to Theo.

8. Curved lines

8. Curved lines in the picture. Art historian Ronald Pickvance believes that the walls of the old lodge, really went at an angle, caused by age.

9. Mirror

9. Mirror. Van Gogh bought mirror specifically to draw self-portraits. Few agreed to pose him: the locals thought his work daubs, in which they would look ridiculous. The famous “Self-Portrait with Pipe” with his ear cut off, he painted with the help of a mirror.

10. Red blanket

10. Red blanket. Van Gogh will be wrapped in it numb when found in the morning December 23, 1888 with a severed ear lobe. This was the first psychotic episode of the artist. Vincent gets into the clinic for the mentally ill and never be able to live happily in his furnished apartment.

source http://www.vokrugsveta.ru/vs/article/8172/