Monday, February 22, 2016

From a Van Gogh letter

Vincent van Gogh to his brother Theo, January 1874:

Admire as much as you can, most people don’t admire enough.

The Letters of Vincent van Gogh , ed. Ronald de Leeuw, trans. Arnold Pomerans (New York: Penguin, 1997).
This book is the latest fare for our household’s two-person Four Seasons Reading Club. We bought one copy and borrowed another after seeing the Art Institute’s new exhibition Van Gogh’s Bedrooms.

comments: 2

Elaine said...

I always thought Theo's letters (and support) for his brother (and his art) were very touching. Knowing a few families dealing with a member who is mentally ill gives a window on what it must have been in that day and age.

Michael Leddy said...

Yes. I was just thinking about what it must have been to be the recipient of these early letters. Theo must have been a deeply patient man. Vincent is more or less caught up in religious fervor, endlessly sermonizing, with occasional references to painters and some very painterly descriptions of landscapes.