VAN GOGH AND THE ARTISTS WHO INSPIRED HIM

Introduction

Welcome to this month’s Oil Painting Blog for Beginners.*

In this issue, we will be looking at Vincent Van Gogh, his evolution to becoming one of the world’s greatest artists and how his work was influenced by other artists, from the old masters like Millet, Rembrandt and Delacroix to his contemporaries, including Manet, Degas, Signac and Monet.

Vincent Van Gogh – The Man

Born in 1853, Vincent Van Gogh was named after both his grandfather and his parents first born, who died at birth, exactly one year after Vincent’s own birth – a fact that for some reason creeps me out, it’s like his fate was sealed even before he had a chance. However, that being said, in his relatively short life of 37 years (passing in 1890), he managed to become a London art dealer, teacher, zealot preacher and then his true calling an artist.

Van Gogh’s artistic career spanned only a decade, between 1880 – 1890, yet in that short time, he created some 860 oil paintings, 1,100 drawings [2] and in his final 70 days (May to July) some 70 masterpieces [3] that would later sell for millions per piece. However, during his lifetime, it is said, that he only sold one painting, The Red Vineyard, to Belgian painter and collector Anna Boch for 400 francs. [4]

Additionally, it’s understood that he was commissioned by his uncle, the art dealer Cornelis Marinus van Gogh, to produce “two sets of drawings of Hague townscapes.”[5]

Throughout his lifetime, Van Gogh, the man, battled with bouts of melancholia and depression. In his earlier years, it was often due to various forms of rejection and heartbreak.

In February 1888, his mental state took a dramatic turn for the worse. Following a nine-week stay by fellow artist Paul Gauguin (1848–1903) at Van Gogh’s home in Arles in the south of France, their relationship ended in a heated argument that resulted in part of Van Gogh’s earlobe being sliced off. While the details of how it happened remain unclear, this event triggered a severe mental breakdown, prompting him to admit himself to St Paul-de-Mausole Asylum in Saint Rémy, where he was also diagnosed with epilepsy.[6]

His stay at the asylum was funded by his devoted younger brother and patron, Theo and lasted until May 1890, when he felt fit enough to return to the outside world. Sadly, just a few months later, on 27 July 1890, he shot himself and died two days later with Theo by his side.[7]

Vincent Van Gogh – The Artist

Van Gogh was for the most part a self-taught artist, with no formal training apart from a short period of tutelage from his relative, Anton Mauve (1838 – 88), an equally short stint of only a few months at the Academy of Fine Art Antwerp, where he was introduced to works by Ruben [8] and finally, while in Paris, again for a short time, attended classes at Fernard Cormon’s studio.[9]

One thing we should probably acknowledge before we continue any further is that Van Gogh, while not completing any academic training in the formal sense, was extremely knowledgeable, particularly about art.

At the age of 16, he was working for one of Europe’s most powerful and international art galleries, Goupil & Cie. There, he would have been exposed to works by the Dutch and Flemish Masters, and artists of the Hague and Barbizon schools. He lived in all the major cities, including The Hague, Amsterdam, Brussels, Antwerp, London and Paris. He spoke Dutch, French, English and German, had an extraordinary visual memory and was extremely well read both in poetry and works of the day.[10]

It was perhaps this appetite for cultural richness that drew him beyond Europe and towards the refined minimalism and vibrant aesthetics of Japanese art.

Akin to his brother, Theo, Van Gogh was also an avid collector of Japanese woodblock prints, particularly ukiyo-e prints. In one of his letters, he noted that he had hundreds in his collection [11] and later noted that: –

“…All my work is based to some extent on Japanese art…”

Vincent to Theo from Arles, 15 July 1888 [12]

Vincent Van Gogh – The Artist – The Early Years (1880 – 1885)

Van Gogh initially, learned to paint from the Old Masters. He spent “untold hours copying the works of the Old Masters such as Hans Holben which he found in an instructional manual called the Cours de dessin (Drawing Course)” [13], that Theo had given him. The manual was created by Jean-Léon Gérôme and Charles Bargue, two famous academic artists, and it is still very much in use to this present day. [14]

At the start of his artistic career, Van Gogh’s initial attempts at painting were no different to those of many artists including Monet, Pissarro and Cezanne.

Dark, dreary looking peasants and a limited palette of colours which consisted according to one of his letters, of: –

“… a supply of paint — big tubes (which work out much cheaper than small ones), but you will understand that I’ve limited myself to simple colours in both watercolour and oil: ochre (red, yellow, brown), cobalt and Prussian blue, Naples yellow, terra sienna, black and white, supplemented with some carmine, sepia, vermilion, ultramarine, gamboge in smaller tubes.

But I refrained from buying colours one ought to mix oneself.” [15]

Vincent to Theo from The Hauge, 15 August 1882

Vincent Van Gogh – The Artist – The Remaining Years (1886 – 1890)

In 1886, Van Gogh travelled to Paris. There over a two-year period until 1888, he painted almost 230 paintings.[16] By this stage, he had a wide knowledge of painting styles of the past masters, was experimenting on how best to “convey intensity of colour”[17] and was loosening up his brushstroke and exploring the use of directional lines and dots.

He paid frequent visits to museums, exhibitions and galleries for inspiration and became familiar with modern artist movements such as impressionism[18] and post impressionism.

His brother Theo, whom he shared an apartment, was now a major art dealer with Goupil and Cie[19] and introduced him to many of these new artists. Theo even went as far as to pretend that he needed Van Gogh to make introductions for him with many of these new artists.[20]

In February 1888, he moved to Arles in Provence, the South of France, and lived there for 15 months until his mental breakdown in May 1889.

During this time, he painted some of his most iconic paintings including the Café Terrace at Night.

He also painted wheat fields, sowers and orchards in bloom.[21]

His mark making, while created at a feverish pace, was “actually laid down carefully and precisely,” with each mark sitting “side by side in a series of lines and differently coloured dots, with the canvas visible in between,” as seen in The Flowering Garden Path also known as The Garden at Arles (1888).[22]

His colour palette became more expressive and experimental. He began working with an extended range of yellows and oranges – such as chrome yellow, cadmium yellow, ochre and various oranges which can be seen in his Sunflower series. His use of blues and purples, including ultramarine, cobalt blue, Prussian blue and violets, is exemplified in Starry Night Over the Rhône. Meanwhile, greens such as viridian and emerald green feature prominently in his painting The Night Café as shown below.

Van Gogh also experimented with complementary colour schemes—yellow and purple, blue and orange, red and green – to evoke heightened emotion rather than focusing on realism. His thick, dynamic brushstrokes of impasto paint further amplified this effect, bringing the colours to life with energy and movement.

During his time at Saint-Paul-de-Mausole Asylum in Saint-Rémy and later in Auvers-sur-Oise near Paris, Van Gogh’s colour palette became more muted, shifting away from the heightened contrasts of his earlier works. While his themes of nature remained consistent, his brushwork grew increasingly expressive, as seen in Starry Night, Road with Cypress and Star, and his Irises series.

Tragically, Van Gogh’s extraordinary artistic journey ended in July 1890, when he took his own life – just as the world was beginning to glimpse his brilliance.

Van Gogh – And The Artists Who Influenced Him

As an artist, Van Gogh was deeply influenced by the Barbizon School, particularly the “social romanticism of Jean-Francois Millet”.[23] He admired Millet’s depictions of peasant life and drew inspiration from works such as The Sower and other rural scenes, which he sketched and continued to reinterpret throughout his final years.

Active from around 1830 to 1870, the Barbizon School focused on realistic landscape painting, naturalism, loose brushwork, and tonal harmony, ultimately paving the way for Impressionism and the practice of plein air (outdoor) painting. Other artists Van Gogh also admired from this movement included Charles-François Daubigny and Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot.

Van Gogh also studied works by Rubens, Rembrandt, Delacroix, Dore, Daumier and many more of that time, right up until 1890[24], his final year alive.

He admired Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish Baroque, late 16th–17th century) for his dynamic compositions and rich colours, while Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch Golden Age, 17th century) influenced his mastery of light and shadow. Eugène Delacroix (French Romanticism, early 19th century) shaped his expressive brushwork and bold colour contrasts, and Gustave Doré (Academic Art & Illustration, 19th century) inspired his detailed imagery. While, Honoré Daumier (Realism & Caricature, 19th century) contributed to his understanding of form and social commentary.

During his time in Paris, Van Gogh was profoundly influenced by the works of his contemporaries, including Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Paul Signac, and Claude Monet. Exposure to the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists transformed his approach to colour, subject matter, and brushwork.

Manet’s bold compositions and modern themes encouraged Van Gogh to explore urban life and portraiture. Degas’ dynamic figures and mastery of movement inspired his expressive brushstrokes, while Signac introduced him to Pointillism, influencing his use of pure, unmixed colours applied in short, rhythmic strokes. Monet’s focus on light and atmosphere led Van Gogh to embrace plein air painting, shifting away from the dark tones of his earlier Dutch works.

This period marked a turning point in Van Gogh’s artistic evolution, as he adopted brighter palettes, looser brushwork, and innovative techniques, laying the foundation for his later masterpieces.

Conclusion

If you’re an aspiring artist, it’s well worth studying the works of Vincent van Gogh alongside those of the artists he himself admired. In this blog, we’ve only dipped a toe into his journey—both as a man and as an artist and his extraordinary body of artwork work that he created between 1880 and 1890.

If you’re based in Ireland and would like to see his work in person, the National Gallery of Ireland houses an example of one of his rooftop paintings from Paris (1886). For a more immersive experience, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is well worth the trip— just be sure to allow plenty of time to explore the collection.

And if travel isn’t on the cards, the books and papers that informed this blog are well worth checking out. In particular, the books – Van Gogh and the Artists He Loved by Steven Naifeh and Van Gogh – The Complete Paintings published by TASCHEN offer a wealth of insight. The latter presents 871 of his paintings alongside thoughtful commentary and beautifully reproduced visuals.

THAT’S IT FOLKS FOR THIS MONTH……

Until next month, when we will continue our oil painting journey.

Wishing you nothing but the very best of wishes!

Emily
June 2025