| Sunday, March 16, 2008 |
| Vincent "Fou-Roux" Van Gogh |
Fou-Roux, Van Gogh's nickname—means "carzy redhed," and that he was (although it seems a harsh label for someone so talented). Whether you believe he cut off his own ear or you think Gauguin actually did it, there's no dispute that he wasn't all right in the head, especially in his later years. But there's no disputing either, that he was (or rather his paintings were) one of the greatest things to ever come out of France.
Everyone's probably familiar with Starry Night, Café Terrace, and the Vase with Twelve Sunflowers. What follows are some of my favorites that don't always get as much attention as those others, but that I think are equally as intriguing. Click any image for the high-res version.
Flowering Plum Tree (after Hiroshige)
Autumn Landscape - makes me want to go camping.
Avenue of Poplars in Autumn - Makes me wonder what a poplar is.
Evening Landscape with Rising Moon - Thought that was the sun coming over the mountain...
Landscape with Couple Walking and a Crescent Moon - Love that moon.
Starry Night Over The Rhone - The other Starry Night
Vincent's Home in Arles (The Yellow House)
The Church at Auvers - I saw this one at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
Skull With Burning Cigarette - Not sure if this one has more the feeling of "I'll smoke to my grave" or "Smoking will put you in your grave."
Vase with Lilacs, Daisies and Anemones - A great alternative to the popular Vase with Twelve Sunflowers.
Wheat Field Under a Clouded Sky - You need to see it large.
Wheat Field with Crows - Although not his last, one of his final paintings before he died. Also see this one large.
Newspaper account of his cutting off of his ear. Some disagree over who actually cut it off, but it seems everyone agrees that he took it to a brothel down the street and gave it to his girlfriend. The clipping roughly translated in part:
Last Sunday, at eleven-thirty in the evening, the named Vincent Vangogh [sic], painter, originally from Holland, presented himself at "the maison de tolerance no. 1, asked for someone named Rachel, and gave to her...his ear, telling her to 'keep this object carefully'. And then he disappeared...
Newspaper clipping announcing Van Gogh's death. Roughly translated:
Sunday July 27th, Van Gogh, age 37, a Duchman, painting artist, living in Auvers, shot himself with a revolver in the field and only being injured, he returned to his room where he died two days later." |
posted by Brett Crockett @ 7:30 PM   |
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| 5 Comments: |
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I don't think it's fair that red-heads get their own definitive term. You couldn't just point to me in a crowd and say "hey, look at that black-head!" Moreover, you waste your breathe saying "voila, le fou aux cheveux noirs," but I dare you to go around yelling "regardes! le fou-noir!" Anyway, the artist thing is cool. I'm interested to see who you're going to pick out next.
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Thanks for putting up this post! For some reason, I find Van Gogh's work to be the best (ever). :)
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Glad you found it helpful Joe, he's one of my favorites as well.
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Nice selection, thanks.
Sunflowers has been my favorite for decades though, and I don't think I'll let it go.
It seems that currently Starry Night is more famoush though. Well, it's a durn kool painting.
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thanks, great post: does ANYONE have any reference or source corroborating "Fou-Roux", I can't find any good article with this nick name?
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I don't think it's fair that red-heads get their own definitive term. You couldn't just point to me in a crowd and say "hey, look at that black-head!" Moreover, you waste your breathe saying "voila, le fou aux cheveux noirs," but I dare you to go around yelling "regardes! le fou-noir!" Anyway, the artist thing is cool. I'm interested to see who you're going to pick out next.