van Gogh

by Anna Torterolo

Dzieło van Gogha, pełne ekspresji i żaru uczuć, mieści się zaledwie w dziesięcioleciu 1880 - 1890. Ogromne zainteresowanie twórczością tego artysty o wyjątkowej biografii zaczęło się dopiero po jego śmierci, dziś uznawany jest za geniusza. Sztuka van Gogha, wyraz napięć i gwałtownych zwrotów - aż do gestu ostatecznego - odzwierciedla całą różnorodność przeżyć. Artysta za pomocą ostrych barw i dynamicznych linii przenosił na płótno wszystkie emocje swojego krótkiego, lecz intensywnego życia.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art History

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief look into the life of Vincent Van Gogh through his paintings. I loved the book's emphasis on the paintings rather than the troubled life of the painter.

[Kanchan Mandanekar · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a nice book that gives insights on Van Gogh's life. His journey of pain, pleasures and the power of expressing himself with intensity and accuracy - it is really inspiring.

I especially loved the explanations of the Peasant Woman, who also appears on the left hand side of The Potato Eaters, braves her human condition with dignity and shines a light that comes from her soul.

Then is The Potato Eaters that remind us of the the roughness of real life than glossing pain with a conventional charm (and thus glorifying miseries). The table looks like an altar and food the sacrament shared by the farmers. There is a prominent darkness of a cathedral.

I will never look at flowers or grass in the same way. His Clumps of Grass (now part of a private collection in Japan) expresses the forces of the universe pulsing within them.

Then is his iconic Starry Night with cypresses representing the link between sky and earth, life and death. The trees are turned into dark flames rising to the sky. The orange moon is possibly Vincent's desire to combine the moon and the sun. One wonders why and only smirks!

Lastly, the Prisoners Exercising. In this depressing pit protected by endlessly high walls, there is the flutter of two white butterflies that fly keeping close to each other. They are easily missed at first glance, and are an embodiment of hope. The young blond man in the foreground is turned slightly towards the viewer, he looks like he might break free of the circle.

Lots of food for thought and contemplation.

[Nichola · Rating 3 out of 5]

A different approach to the works- as an amateur enthusiast, it's tough to find truly accessible books about art history that aren't trite. This traces a little of his life, a little of his phases and specifically points out what makes the famous works different from what came before them. I was especially appreciative of the illustrated pages about the Japanese work that inspired him. Not complete on its own, but useful and quick way of pulling lots of threads together.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't find this book very useful. It's meant to just give a brief overview of Van Gogh's life and times, but I found it very difficult to follow. There is no real narrative and it jumps around a lot. Each pair of pages has a different theme, but I felt like they gave very little important information. A few of the facts even differed from what I'd read previously about Van Gogh. I was hoping to use this to fill in some of the aspects of Van Gogh's biography that I was not familiar with, but I was left feeling like I hadn't learned much. I know that it is not meant to be a full biography, but I was hoping to learn a bit more. However, it did have some nice full color reproductions of Van Gogh's art.

[Nic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vincent Van Gogh es una de esas personalidades cuya sensibilidad ante el mundo siempre me parecerá fascinante. Su interpretación novedosa del color, y ese sentimiento de lo interno que quiere salir a gritos e invadir lo exterior. Sus cartas a su hermano Theo son de una belleza incomparable. Este corto Art Book expone algunas de sus obras más notables, detalles bibliográficos y algo de contexto social, cultural y político de la época de dichas obras.

[Kjersti · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite of the Van Gogh books I’ve checked out since reading Vincent and Theo. Has good quality color pictures of Van Gogh’s work and those that influenced him, as well as a section about those that came after and were influenced by Van Gogh.

The layout of the book helps the reader digest the art and points out details and their significance.

[Nikola Grycz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zwykła biografia czy coś w ten deseń. Nic szczególnego, ale podobało mi się.

[Amber the Human · Rating 3 out of 5]

I keep checking out books about Van Gogh, who is one of my favorite artists, without actually reading them. This time I did. The book is good because it has nice glossy photos and gives background on the man and his surroundings. It's a little muddled at times, they don't give much explanation about things. I would recommend it for people looking for just a brief overview of the man and his art, but I will keep looking for more info and a book with a nice picture of my favorite piece of art - a crab on its back.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This DK book is intended to be an accessible introduction to the life and art of Vincent Van Gogh. In many respects in succeeds -- each two page spread focuses on a specific idea, with each inset photo/illustration having its own snippet of additional information. At times an explanatory comment without context may have little meaning to the average reader, who may not be familiar with the works of Rabelais, Bergson, or Benjamin.