When one hears the name Vincent van Gogh, what thoughts seem to come to
mind? Is it the fact that he was a famous Dutch painter, who gave the world timeless,
visual masterpieces such as "The Starry Night" and "The Red Vineyard?" Or that he
was a crazed man who sliced his ear lobe? Whatever thoughts come to mind, it should
be realized that van Gogh was an individual that sought for the acceptance of society,
and only after his death was he finally deemed to be a genius for this artwork. He was
indeed a caring individual who was obsessed with trying to please society, but in actual
fact, he was stuck in an uncaring, un-accepting society which thought that he was insane.
Born in Groot Zundert, located in The Netherlands on March 30th, 1853 Vincent
was the son of Theodorus van Gogh and Anna Cornelia Carbentus. His father was a
Pastor at a Dutch reformed church, while his mother was just a homemaker.
His family
wasn't exceedingly wealthy, but it didn't stop Vincent from leading a normal childhood.
Then in 1857, Theo was born. Vincent and Theo shared a special brotherly bond; the two
both loved and cared for each other very much. Theo was the sort of bother that one
could be dependent on, and later on in Vincent's life, Vincent became dependent on his
little brother.
At the tender age of nine, Vincent began drawing. His early sketches
determined the creativity and talent that he possessed. But it wasn't until the age of
Twenty-seven when Vincent decided to become an artist for the rest of his life. Throughout the lives of the van Goghs, art was apart of their lives. Vincent's uncles
Cornelius and Vincent were art dealers, and in 1869 Vincent van Gogh decided...