Vincent Van Gogh

by Rosalind Ormiston

A gorgeous new edition with the cover printed on silver. Vincent van Gogh is considered one of the world's greatest painters, his work having had a huge and far-reaching influence on 20th-century art as well as remaining visually and emotionally powerful to this day. We all know of Van Gogh's troubled genius, but now through his letters to his brother Theo, as discussed in this beautifully illustrated and fascinating giftbook, you will discover the true depth of the artist's thoughts, beliefs, ambitions and his struggle with his mental illness. Containing translations of some of the most revealing letters and insightful commentary, alongside photographs of the letters themselves and his best-loved artworks, this is a real treat.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, History, Biography

192 pages, Hardcover

First published November 29, 2018

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vincent, my dude, you break my heart 😭

[Timothy Dillehay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like his brushstrokes, and other art history terms.

[Chrisorc · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fina bilder men jag störde mig på att de verk som Vincent skriver om i sina brev inte är de som visas i boken nära den sidan. Det gör att man bläddrar frenetiskt efter vilken jäkla bild det nu är han skriver om.
Frustrerande.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice collection of van Gogh's most important paintings and excerpts from his correspondence with family and friends throughout his life. There are more than 100 paintings from van Gogh included and a few from other painters. The paintings are not in chronological order, but a register at the end of the book sorted by title provides assistance in searching for a specific painting.

I'm not an art connoisseur, but from the small amount of artists I know, van Gogh is easily my favorite. So I was really happy when I found this book for a cheap price. And after I've read it I'm still happy, but there are some problems with it.
1. While most famous paintings are included, some are missing. Like Road With Cypress And Star.
2. For The Night Café the simpler watercolor version is used. This might also be the case for other paintings, but that was the one I noticed.
3. Almost all, if not all, paintings are cut. I'm unsure of the reason for this, but to me it is a disservice to van Gogh's intended arrangement.
4. The colors of the paintings feels a bit lackluster. Especially when compared to digital versions which can be found online.

As said I'm glad I picked it up and it is nice to be able to look at van Gogh's work in an actual book. Having said that I will go to the digital collections of his work when I want to see his work uncut and rich in colors.

3 stars out of 5.

[Eva Francova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vincent Van Gogh – muž, jenž tvořil mimořádná díla a prožil mimořádný život. Díky podpoře svého bratra se mohl skutečně stát tím, kým byl.

Vincentův život v knize sledujeme v letech 1872–1890 a to díky dopisům, převážně adresovaných jeho bratrovi, a hlavně díky jeho obrazům, na kterých sledujeme jeho vývoj i momentální rozpoložení. O Vincentu Van Goghovi jsem četla již dva zbeletrizované životopisy a myslím, že nastal čas podívat se i na jeho skutečný život.

Kniha Mistrovské dílo je nádherná sama o sobě, bude také ideálním dárkem. Je zážitkem, už jen v ní listovat a kochat se všemi krásnými obrazy. Nejsou tu jen obrazy Van Gogha, ale je tu i pár od umělců, jimiž se Van Gogh inspiroval.

Na začátku knihy nám autorka přiblíží stručný životopis Vincenta a pak se již ponoříme do dopisů. Těch se zachovalo téměř 2000 a ukazují jeho život i jeho myšlenky. A právě některé jeho myšlenky jsou nádherné, mnohé jsem si vypsala a budu se k nim vracet. Pár dopisů je v knize i otištěných a můžete na nich obdivovat, jaký měl Vincent úhledný rukopis.

Umělcovi obrazy jsou opravdu různorodé, měl rozličná období, která se promítla do jeho tvorby. Moc se mi jeho díla líbí a některá bych si hned ráda pověsila u mě doma, abych se jimi mohla neustále kochat.

Díky tomu, že jsem o Vincentově životě již četla, se mi vše skvěle propojilo a pospojovalo. Ale i když o jeho životě nebudete nic vědět, i tak věřím, že vás kniha zaujme. Autorka vydala v zahraničí obdobnou knihu i o Alfonsu Muchovi, budu doufat, že vyjde i u nás. Více takových knih by byla opravdu nádherná sbírka.

Nemusíte být velkým znalcem umění, stačí láska ke krásným věcem.

[Joel Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a truly difficult book to read. It's arranged beautifully, with portions of letters interleaved with beautiful artwork. The story of Van Gogh's life is of course very tragic, to say the least. Reading it gives me more compassion for the depressed and suicidal people in my life. You really see both his passion and mental challenges shine through in his words: his kindness, his anger, his humanity.

[Pedro DLG · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one that I will recommend to any fan of Vincent Van Gogh, because your able to read his life over the years with his words, you understand how good and bad he was doing in life and how his mental issues begin. Also you see how close was to his brother, and other people. In some of the letters you're able to read how he describe the paintings he was doing at the moment. At the end you feel that you are really close to Vincent and you really feel sad to his end.

[mayleeeee · Rating 5 out of 5]

pretty

[Zach Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vincent Van Gogh inspired me to become a starving artist!!!

But then I got hungry so I ate.

But now I'm back to being a starving artist!!

[Shereen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book. Gorgeous, detailed artwork with stories and letters to describe it. I love Vincent Van Gogh and this was a beautiful read!