When we were in Amsterdam it was a must to visit the Van Gogh Museum. So one fine morning the whole group went to explore the Van Gogh Museum. This museum is an art Museum dedicated to the works of Vincent Van Gogh. This museum is also known for having the largest collection of Van Gogh in the world. It approximately got 200 paintings, 400 drawings, and 700 letters by Vincent Van Gogh. I got to know a lot after this museum tour and the best part was when I figured Vincent’s early paintings subject was the peasant life and their hardworking lifestyle. It convinced me to acknowledge Vincent different than others as he was not like the stereotypical artists. He put a lot of thought in people’s daily life and created amazing artwork through portraying that.
The way he become an artist was also fascinating. Their family business was related to paintings. So Vincent knew since childhood about the importance of someone’s artwork. He travelled, wrote letters to his brother who was very close to him. In the museum through the audio guide I heard the English translation of some of his letters. It reminded me of sister and how close we are. It made me a bit nostalgic too. Vincent’s father wanted him to join the family business but Vincent never wanted to do it after he figured his love for art. After the peasant life representation, Vincent painted several Japanese culture influenced artwork. In the museum there was several self portrait of Vincent. He loved to portray himself through his art. There were some drawings where it was portrayed that he was painting which was done by his friend Paul Gauguin. He also did some western art.
Vincent was a genius who went through some mental illness and that is why at one point he cut off his own ear. It is considered that he did that because of an argument between Gauguin and him. Later he at the age of 37 he shot himself in the chest with a revolver and died after two days. It is a matter of sorrow that so many people get inspiration from these famous artists but they end up killing themselves. Depression can swallow a person but there’s always hope, if our concentration is solely based on ourselves how will we be able to survive. While killing himself Vincent never thought of his dear brother Theo. As a matter of fact Theo died within a year after Vincent’s death. It might’ve happened for his physical condition but Vincent’s death put him into a shock for sure. Vincent’s sister in law knew how close Theo was with Vincent and she came up to save Vincent’s work. She took care of every so that Vincent could get the true recognition he deserved. And because of her contribution Theo’s son is now taking care of his Uncle’s belongings. It was a wonderful visit indeed as I broadened my knowledge about Van Gogh. I felt the bond between the brothers and the paintings were meaningful to me.
After the van gogh museum tour some went back to the hostel, some went other places. I went with three other group mates at the Wagamama. Their food tasted amazing when I was tried first in Boston. I was craving for calamari fries of wagamama. When the food arrived it still tasted just amazing like the Boston’s one. After lunch I took off to collect data until dinner time and explored the city a bit.
