Vincent Van Gogh's Style

Paper Summary:

The paper examines Van Gogh's style in two of his seemingly different works; "The Starry Night" and "Self-portrait" and looks at the similar use of thick paint strokes, the use of thick layers of paint to create texture and the use of different tones of the same color. The paper points out the main difference between these painting, one is a landscape, while the other is a portrait, but concludes that they are both wonderful examples of Van Gogh's trademark style and expressionism as a whole.

From the Paper:

"Of course, brush technique is not the only similarity between the two works. Anyone who is familiar with any of Van Gogh's older works knows that he began working primarily in browns and other somber colors. However, as his art expanded, and as he left his country setting, Van Gogh began exploring the use of more vivid coloring. Both of the paintings demonstrate how Van Gogh used bright colors and vivid contrasts to help make his paintings stand out. In Self-portrait (September 1889), Van Gogh used a deep blue background, which makes his image stand out in the portrait. Though his color use was realistic, he used bright colors that are not actually contained in the normal range of human skin tone to demonstrate luminosity, as if the sun were shining on part of the portrait."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Van Gogh, Vincent. "Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Emile Bernard: Arles, 9 April 1888." Van Gogh's Letters. 2008. WebExhibits. 2 Oct. 2008 http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/18/B03.htm
• Van Gogh, Vincent. "Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh: Arles, 9 April 1888." Van Gogh's Letters. 2008. WebExhibits. 2 Oct. 2008http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/18/474.htm
• Van Gogh, Vincent. "Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh: Saint Remy, 19 September 1889." Van Gogh's Letters. 2008. WebExhibits. 2 Oct. 2008http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/20/607.htm

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