Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Bedroom
(1888)
“I am a man of passions, capable of and subject to doing more
or less foolish things—which I happen to regret, more or less,
afterwards.”
—Vincent van Gogh
Vincent was alone, a Dutchman in Provence. And that had its
downside. Vincent swung from flurries of ecstatic activity to bouts
of great loneliness. Like anyone
traveling alone, he experienced those
high highs and low lows. This nar-
row, trapezoid-shaped, single-room
apartment (less than 200 square feet)
must have seemed like a prison cell
at times. (Psychologists point out
that most everything in this painting
comes in pairs—two chairs, two paintings, a double bed squeezed
down to a single—indicating his desire for a mate. Hmm.)
He invited his friend Paul Gauguin to join him, envisioning a
sort of artists' colony in Arles. He spent months preparing a room
upstairs for Gauguin's arrival.
Gauguin's Chair
(1888)
“Empty chairs—there are many of them, there will be even
more, and sooner or later, there will be nothing but empty
chairs.”
—Vincent van Gogh
Gauguin arrived. At first, they got along great,
painting and carousing. But then things went
bad. They clashed over art, life, and person-
alities. On Christmas Eve 1888, Vincent went
ballistic. Enraged during an alcohol-fueled
argument, he pulled out a knife and waved
it in Gauguin's face. Gauguin took the hint
and quickly left town. Vincent was horrified
at himself. In a f fit of remorse and madness,
he mutilated his own ear and presented it to
a prostitute.
The Sower
(1888)
A dark, silhouetted f figure sows
seeds in the burning sun. It's late
in the day. The heat from the sun,
the source of all life, radiates out
in thick swirls of paint. The sower
must be a hopeful man, because
the field looks slanted and barren.
