Van Gogh painted with a ferocious spirit and often spoke of God in his letters to this brother Theo. Where did this come from, and what did he mean? Van Gogh’s Early Life He was born in the south of The Netherlands in Zundert into a religious family, his father the local preacher. It was small-town Dutch living, and a very close and religious community. After attending boarding schools Van Gogh himself turned to religious study. Throughout his life he was moved by others, it seems Van Gogh was always attracted to those who needed help, the poor, the ones weighed down with trouble and grief. And it was here that Van Gogh could see the purpose of religion, it helped to give clarity and purpose to those that needed it most. Van Gogh and Religion Van Gogh attempted to study Theology at the university of Amsterdam, and...

There is no way around it, Van Gogh was unlucky, extremely unlucky, in love. Young Love During his early years Van Gogh proposed to two girls whom he had met and could not stop himself from confessing his feelings, both turned him down. Some years later he met his cousin, Kee, who had become recently widowed. Vincent enjoyed their long walks and wasted no time in declaring his love and proposing marriage. The family shocked, Kee became the third to decline Vincent’s advances, forcefully exclaiming, ‘No, nay, never.’ Van Gogh continued to pursue her but her family stepped in. From then on he would not propose again. He would though still find love and companionship. Disapproved by his family Van Gogh was attracted to intelligent women who had endured difficult lives. This extended to people looked down...

The Portrait of Dr. Gachet was one of the most famous pieces of art that Vincent Van Gogh ever painted. Nearing the end of his brief life, Van Gogh was admitted into the doctor’s clinic, where he underwent treatment for his mental illnesses. At this time, Van Gogh developed a friendship with Dr. Gachet, which inspired him to paint two portraits of the doctor as a sign of their friendship. He even gave one of them to Dr. Gachet himself. Who was Dr. Gachet? Paul Ferdinand Gachet was a French physician who treated Vincent Van Gogh during the final stages of his life in Auver-sur-Oise . He was a huge supporter of artists, and the current artistic trend at that time, which was Impressionism. He was also an amateur painter, who painted under the pseudonym, Paul van Ryssel. Before his death in 1909, he was known to...

Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent Van Gogh are three of the many artists whose masterpieces have been some of the most expensive paintings in the world. Though, Warhol and Picasso lived long enough to see their success; Van Gogh was only able to sell one painting in his lifetime. Van Gogh’s most expensive painting is the Portrait of Doctor Gatchet that was auctioned for $82.5 million, which is around $151.2 after adjusting inflation. Here are some of the most expensive paintings in the world: 1.    Interchange by Willem de Kooning An abstract expressionist painting, Interchange was sold in September 2015 by the David Geffen Foundation at $300 million. 2.    Nafea Faa Ipoipo (When Will You Marry?) by Paul Gauguin This painting by the post-impressionist artist is actually...

1) Femme Assise by Pablo Picasso - $63.4 million One of the iconic paintings by Picasso, this one is actually said to depict his lover Fernande Olivier.  Most of Picasso’s cubist paintings are in museums, and that is one of the main reasons why this painting fetched such a high price. After all, cubism is the technique which paved the way for modern 21st-century art. 2) Lot and His Daughters by Peter Paul Rubens - $58 million Lot and His Daughters painting has been away from the public eye for centuries now. It was bought by a Roman Emperor Joseph I and then by the First Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill, and since then the painting has been in private collections only. The last sale of the painting happened in 1896, and after that, the painting only became available for sale again in July 2016. 3) Untitled by...