Day 3 (Thu 20170608) Van Gogh Museum

Van Gogh Museum has the largest collection of his masterpieces
(What else do we expect since it's delegated to him?)
However, what's unknown to me, before the visit was, it was actually through the effort of his brother's family, because his brother Theo believed that Vincent's talent should be recognised and made known to the world.

Vincent's life story was presented, not just through the timeline - a section that detailed his relationship with his family and friends, and his later years; more interestingly, through the masterpieces he did over his life.

The link would have done more justice that what I could describe:
https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/vincents-life-and-work
(screenshots from the website)

What I have discovered about Vincent that I did not know in the past:

• To be able to bring life to a painting, or maybe not about bringing life to it, but to embed life it in, the artist needed to be able to understand, immerse and empathise with what he was going to put on the canvas! This was well illustrated in his work, the Potato Eaters. He not only moved to live in the village, to observe the livelihood and behaviour of the farmers, he also interacted and made numerous sketches of elements that made up the final painting. So, painting was not about just painting on a canvas, but it's a collection and consolidation of the many observations, rehearsals of drawings and sketches! I now admire from my heart - the effort and the spirit breathe into each of the paintings!
• There were lots of hard work (and effort) behind each piece of completed masterpiece. Of course, patience. The artist needed to be very observant not just on what was going on, but into minute details like gestures that bring action to life in a painting!

• I think, something lesser known to many of us was Vincent "longed" for the Japanese culture. "Longed" might not be the right word, but at one point, he was making reference to the Japanese work and culture, and that was reflected in some of his paintings:

•  About the Sunflowers, I read that there were many versions that he painted. However, I had not read deep enough until when I learnt that he was actually experimenting the many shades of yellow to complete a piece of work! Impressive! It's no wonder one of the pieces that caught attention from all the visitors. 

• Another beautiful masterpiece was the Almond Blossom. What's beautiful was the intent of the painting, "The painting was a gift for his brother Theo and sister-in-law Jo, who had just had a baby son, Vincent Willem. In the letter announcing the new arrival, Theo wrote: ‘As we told you, we’ll name him after you, and I’m making the wish that he may be as determined and as courageous as you.’ Unsurprisingly, it was this work that remained closest to the hearts of the Van Gogh family. Vincent Willem went on to found the Van Gogh Museum." (extracted from https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0176V1962) 
• Something obvious in Vincent's style was the broad strokes, which when examined more closely, I noticed that it did an amazing job - they were well coordinated, blended and brought about the desired movement. For instance, in his collection of wheat field paintings

Big Idea: Talent must be coupled with hard work in order to achieve success. To be successful, one needs to have a growth mindset to the experiment and venture apart from rehearsing to polish one's skills.

On another note, notice that one other famous painting was missing from the Van Gogh Museum as well as all the publications about the museum?

• The Starry Night - It has been in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City since 1941, acquired through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest.