Dear Theo: the Autobiography of Vincent Van Gogh

by Vincent; Stone Irving & Jean Van Gogh

"One of the most revealing, deep-moving autobiographies of all time. Irving Stone, distinguished author of The Agony and The Ecstasy & Lust for Life, has collected Van Gogh's intimate letters to his brother Theo, and the result is a vivid self-portrait in words whose intensity and emotion equal any painting the artist ever created."

Paperback

Published January 1, 1969

Reviews

[Dylan Kiewel · Rating 4 out of 5]

imagine writing ~600 pages worth of verbose letters to your brother and people still reading them 125 plus years later ... !!! one of the bigger book undertakings i've done in a minute, took me all this month basically, touch dry at times, but ultimately worth it. van gogh, as artaud describes in his BATSHIT essay on him, is at times just as good at describing in words his feelings, his impressions, as he is painting them. in the letters it is confirmed how sensitive a soul he was, how ardently day after day year after year he struggled to find his purpose, to express himself properly, to help others, to do something different in painting. so many failures, so much heartbreak, so much rejection. in the letters we learn how passionately van gogh appreciated, in addition to his fellow painters, novelists, who he learned just as much from. the man was OBSESSED with millet and delacroix but also with zola and shakespeare. i've often considered dabbling in painting and the URGE IS RENEWED.

ALSO, watch minelli's LUST FOR LIFE after reading this (or during), it's the perfect accompaniment.