The World of Van Gogh: 1853-1890 - Research Paper Example

A great deal of Van Gogh’s influences on technique can be traced within his paintings. Ranging from Divisionism, what is commonly referred to as pointillism learned through Seurat, through his heavier impasto and broad brush strokes that he developed himself, the texture of his later paintings are nearly as expressive in style as the images they portray. The petals of his sunflowers, for example, created with single broad strokes in heavily applied paint, seem to almost peel off the surface as they fall from the flowers, catching and reflecting light in various ways to give the painting a different impression from every viewpoint. This technique also functions to add shadows in predictable areas, further emphasizing the idea of decay as well as the sense of physical presence despite the somewhat unrealistic colors used. This technique enabled Van Gogh to ignore somewhat the need to paint shadows as the contours of his paint as it was applied to the surface functioned to create these aspects of the work for him, allowing them to remain true to the subject as the viewer moved around the painting. He used the pointillist technique of the expressionist movement to illustrate the intricate design of the sunflower seed heads while he allowed the background plane of yellow to recede by using a subtle color wash in the style of the earlier impressionists. This combination of style can be seen in many paintings made by Van Gogh, such as Two Crabs, currently on display at the National Gallery. The painting is thought to have been executed shortly after Van Gogh’s release from the hospital in Arles in 1889 (Wallace, 1969). According to the National Gallery (2007), Van Gogh was probably inspired by a Japanese woodcut reproduction sent to him by his brother Theo and was a subject Van Gogh repeated more than once. The world of the Impressionists was one in which all types of art forms were explored to discover the best means of rejecting the machines of the Industrial age and emphasizing the human emotional reaction to the natural forms and shapes discovered in the non-fabricated world. As a result of this wide mix of styles and approaches emerging in this time period, there was also a wide mix of dissension regarding what constituted ‘good’ art. Thrown into this discussion were the relative merits of Japanese art. “While American intellectuals maintained that Edo prints were a vulgar art form … ukiyo-e, Japanese wood-block prints, became a source of inspiration for Art Nouveau, cubism and many European impressionist painters in France” (Golding, 2008). However, the only related painting known featuring the crabs is one held in Amsterdam that depicts only one crab lying on its back. In Two Crabs, it is thought the same crab is pictured twice, once on its back and once right side up. Taking his cue from the woodcut, the image portrayed shows little more than the two simple crabs and a brilliant blue background. However, characteristic of Van Gogh, this seemingly simple image is imbued with significant emotion and energy through his individual portrayal and distinguishing technique. The two crabs are rendered in exquisite detail despite the concept that it is the same crab, shown in two perspectives as he was flipped midway through the painting. Keeping in mind the fact that Van Gogh rarely worked from any kind of sketch, this painting demonstrates not only his skill with colors but also his technical ability to accurately portray even the most detailed subjects. The intricate details of the crab’s legs and body as well as the intricate designs of the carapace show a faithful representation of the life form while the careful blending of colors, straight from the tubes as Van Gogh opted to paint, nevertheless show a close representation of the crab’s natural shades (Wallace, 1969). Although the background is kept to an anonymous blue, like many of his paintings, this solid block of color is not so solid. The contrasting field is alive with shifting tones of blue and green in different tones sufficient to keep energy high while also serving to fall back into the background where it belongs and forcing the crabs into the foreground. In this image, Van Gogh once again demonstrates a combination of techniques to achieve his final result. The crabs are created with intricate tiny strokes juxtaposing one color against another to create the illusion of rounded shapes and depth, creating such realism that the crab seems almost ready to skittle off the page. Very little blending of colors is involved in the depiction, allowing the careful layering of shades to become blended by the viewer’s eye in much the same way as Seurat envisioned in his development of the Divisionist method (Mullarkey, 2007). A close look at the crab’s leftmost claw as it is exposed on its back reveals the careful banding of brilliant reds with a darker hue that combine, when standing back, to create a richly shaded orange that reveals the cylindrical nature of the outer claw even as a pale gold laid over an old gold reveals the shiny hardness of the protective cover. Subtle blue and green highlights incorporated into the crab’s underside and claws help to balance the painting even as the tiny strokes serve to highlight the proper contours of the living animal. The background is similarly active, with broader short strokes that serve to suggest a rather peaceful watery field. Using heavier paint application, the background takes on a rippled appearance with a mostly green hue, but interspersed with darker greens and blues, again applied pure and allowed to mix in the eye of the viewer. The hashed application is reminiscent of ripples while the careful treatment appearing around the crab bodies is suggestive of the skittering movement of the creatures both as it struggles to right itself and as it might move when its legs are on the ground. This is especially evident in the front of each crab, with dark blue and green lines carefully edging around the front claw and legs of the upside down crab and green and light green bands appearing immediately in front of the other crab. Throughout his brief but brilliant career as an artist, Van Gogh demonstrated not only a masterful conception of his art, but a willingness to explore new techniques and ideas to express the emotions of his subjects that he felt was essential to a proper display of art. Differing from the Impressionists in this regard, he felt all art’s purpose was essentially to capture emotions and to portray these emotions to a viewing public, to bring awareness to those most in position to do something about it as in his early years or to bring joy and happiness to those most in need of it in his later years. He applied the techniques and theories he learned in Paris to the masterpieces he produced in southern France as a means of both celebrating the color and life of the area he so loved and expressing a higher sense of eternal love of the land and simple things through the subjects he selected. By looking carefully at the paintings produced during this period, it becomes possible to see the mature application of the techniques he developed as well as to understand the expressiveness these techniques afforded him. The style he developed remains uniquely his own, yet his attitudes toward art and its meaning gave birth to an entirely new approach by artists who followed after him – Expressionism. Works Cited Golding, Mark. “Japonism.” The Arts and Crafts Home. Brighton, 2008. May 26, 2009 < http://www.achome.co.uk/antiques/japonism.htm> Mullarkey, Maureen. “Division of Labor.” Studio Matters. 2007. May 26, 2009 National Gallery of Art. London, 2007. May 26, 2006 Wallace, Robert. The World of Van Gogh: 1853-1890. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1969. Read More