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In Search of Van Gogh

Capturing the Life of the Artist through Photographs and Paintings

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
A beautiful art book and travelogue detailing the life and inspirations of Vincent Van Gogh featuring over 250 black-and-white and full-color images.
"With this compact trove of contemporary photographs juxtaposed with Van Gogh's artworks, homes, and friendly commentary, the intensity of the artist's life will go down more easily. Van Gogh fans will enjoy walking in his footsteps, and it will surely inform new audiences as well." —Library Journal
Follow in the footsteps of Van Gogh, from his birthplace in Zundert, Netherlands, to his last days in Auvers-sur-Oise, France, and explore the hidden inspirations behind the world-renowned artist's most famous paintings . . .
In 1990, two photographers and art enthusiasts, Danilo De Marco and Mario Dondero, set out to explore the details of Vincent Van Gogh's life, retracing his journey across Europe by foot and by train. Armed with the love and knowledge of Van Gogh's work, they traveled from the Netherlands to England, Belgium, and France to take in the sights as Van Gogh might have seen them a century earlier. They also turned to art historian Gloria Fossi to better understand, experience, and contextualize Van Gogh's brilliant mind, drawing insights from his personal letters and other historical documents. 
Van Gogh's well-documented travels come alive in this gorgeous book which brings together the landscapes, architecture, portraits, and cultural references that inspired his art. The authors juxtapose vintage and contemporary photographs with Van Gogh's renditions, demonstrating not only the passage of time, but Van Gogh's unique artistic vision, brilliantly revealed brushstroke by brushstroke. From the Netherlands, where the artist was born, to his last days in France, no place he visited in his thirty-seven years is left unexplored, and all have become timeless landmarks through his art.
In Search of Van Gogh brings into focus the places and objects that inspired and fueled Van Gogh's artistic genius and offers fresh insights into his prolific work and process. In searching for the artist's mind and soul, the authors create a pointillistic portrait of a human being whose life was remarkable, and whose story must be shared for generations to come. 
"Art historian Fossi . . . and photographers De Marco and Dondero trace how Vincent van Gogh's travels inspired his art in this perceptive, richly illustrated work. Fossi maps out van Gogh's life in chronological order, weaving together letters, paintings, and images, along with contemporary photographs from De Marco and Dondero, who set out on a trip across Europe to photograph the geography and places that inspired his works. . . . Insightful and illuminating, this poetic work will entrance historians, artists, and art lovers." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from May 31, 2021
      Art historian Fossi (Art in Florence) and photographers De Marco and Dondero trace how Vincent van Gogh’s travels inspired his art in this perceptive, richly illustrated work. Fossi maps out van Gogh’s life in chronological order, weaving together letters, paintings, and images, along with contemporary photographs from De Marco and Dondero, who set out on a trip across Europe to photograph the geography and places that inspired his works. In doing so, van Gogh emerges as an irrepressible man “whose wild and restless wandering... propelled him to the forefront of Western art.” Born in 1853, van Gogh learned to draw in his hometown in Zundert in the Netherlands before moving to Ramsgate, England, where he found inspiration in the town’s houses, rendered in a yellow hue that struck him as “both physical and psychological.” After failing at teaching and the ministry, van Gogh committed to art, moving to Paris in 1886 to live with his brother Theo and finding edification in his friendships with post-impressionists including Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. His move to Provence deepened his obsession with nature and color, even as his “ruthless introspection” overwhelmed him and inspired his most iconic work, The Starry Night (1889). Insightful and illuminating, this poetic work will entrance historians, artists, and art lovers.

    • Library Journal

      September 1, 2021

      This English translation of Uffizi art historian Fossi's Sulle tracce di Van Gogh: un viaggio sui luoghi dell'arte contains short, conversational narratives akin to well-crafted curatorial wall labels that provide context for Van Gogh's artworks while contrasting archival and new photos of his various domiciles. During his short life, Van Gogh moved 37 times to 20 different places in four countries while creating hundreds of works, some of which he documented religiously in family correspondence. Excerpts from letters (as well as related resources) abound here, and Fossi's engaging thematic analyses on paint-yellow pages round out this attractive art travelogue. At times, it highlights the sensational or novel: stolen artwork and a fascinating theory that Van Gogh's presumed knowledge of astronomy informed his famous star paintings. The backmatter (including maps and indexes) adds gravitas. The author, photographers, and designers clearly bring their talents and hearts to this project. VERDICT With this compact trove of contemporary photographs juxtaposed with Van Gogh's artworks, homes, and friendly commentary, the intensity of the artist's life will go down more easily. Van Gogh fans will enjoy walking in his footsteps, and it will surely inform new audiences as well.--Marianne Laino Sade, formerly at Washington Coll., Chestertown, MD

      Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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