h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A576795

Here is a little article about one of the loveable nutters of the art world. Any comments gratefully received.

Emily

Speaking of self-denial... was he ever engaged or at least interested in a relationship?


Absolutely great stuff, and won't fail to be recommended!

In the meantime, could you be bothered to find some links to a few of the paintings?

Bossel, Scout (just ran out of picks to make )

Couldn't agree more. Brilliant stuff. Can't fault it.



Orcus

(Incidentally Bossel - how come you got picked as a scout slightly after me but get to reccomend instantly? I have to wait nearly a month )

Hi Orcus !

I dunno! Maybe they supposed I already had prepared a list of entries to recommend (which of course I have ), or perhaps they are drawing the allocations to time slots from out of a hat?

Ha! I know it: I sent in my application one day before you

Favouritism!

Thank you...

I'll have a go with the links.

On the self-denial front - he lived with the pregnant ex-prostitute Sien at one point, but other than that, I don't think so. Maybe the church got to him.

Orcus - just saw that you're at Birmingham Uni; I go to KEHS just across the road. Plus my dad works in the rheumatology/immunology depts., so I've been there far too many times over the years...

Small world

I love it!
Some picutres with in the text would be even better than the links. The copyright for them should have expiered long ago maybe the BBC could jump over her own shadow and put some in there.
I have this faint idea in my head that states that Van Gogh drank some amounts of absynth, which was common at that time (?). And that the (ab)use of that gave rise to some of the colour-schemes used by him.
Also, I think that there was a scientific publication some time ago (hey, I like to provide specific information! ) which stated that the stars painted in Van Gogh's "Starry night" and other might-time paintings are astronomically correct ... Ah, found some info on that ... try "van gogh star constellation cafe" on google ... that might provide some info

But, as I said, love the entry! Good work!

Cheers!
Tube

Beautiful entry. Should definitely go into the guide. And not just because I come from Zuid-holland too...

TM.

Hi, St. Emily Ultramarine!
I think your article is excellent. One thing has occurred to me - I notice that a lot of entries on composers include some kind of "Essential Listening" comments, which are a good guide to where people should start. Is it possible to have some little "Essential Viewing" section, listing even 3 or 4 galleries where people can see the best of his paintings? I'm sure the museum in Amsterdam would be the first on the list, but I don't know what would be next - Paris, London, New York, Leningrad? Links are nice, but people should be encouraged to look at the real thing!
Azara

Azara, good suggestion... but these days there's a little knack to the whole business of including somebody else's pics - the Beeb wouldn't let us!

It would be good if there can be links - maybe the BBC itself has some of his stuff? Who would know?

I think that maybe the piece could do with a short 'wrapping up' paragraph - anybody else thinks so? But it's quite good, I am a big fan of Vincent's, I share a name with him! Interesting artist, interesting, tragic life.

Oh, Bossel,
Were you mixing up my comments with someone else's? I suggested a short written list or guide to where people can see some actual paintings, not links to scanned images or anything like that.
Azara

Thanks everyone; I'll have a go at attacking some of those suggestions tomorrow, for tomorrow is my last A-level exam (cue small cheer)...

sorry Azara, I was carried away by your last sentence, "Links are nice, but people should be encouraged to look at the real thing!"

Thumps up for your exams, St Emily Ultramarine!

Finished me exams! Sadly, I completely buggered up one of the questions on my English paper today, which seeing as I need an 'A' to go anywhere, is not a good thing...

Hi,

In response to Azara's question above, there is one museum which I would argue is superior to the Amsterdam van Gogh in terms of showing Vincent's work.

The Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, near Arnhem in South-East Netherlands, is a little gem. As well as several fine van Goghs around which the collection is built, it contains work by notables such as Picasso, Seurat and Mondriaan. The building sits in grounds which are dotted with some of the very best modern sculpture, and these grounds are in turn set in a National park, the Hoge Veluwe (or "High Badlands"), which most closely resemble England's New Forest.

The K-M also contains my very favourite van Gogh painting - "Four Cut Sunflowers". This isn't the bright and breezy sunflowers you'll have seen in the vase. These flowers may very well be the same ones a few days later - their colour fading and their petals wilting as they dry out. It's a powerful image of the ephemeral nature of beauty, and a fabulous counterpoint to the "simpler" flower paintings.

However, maybe all this should be in a separate entry on the paintings of VvG, and this one should remain devoted to the man and his life.

GVI

Hi Emily,

I'm pleased to say that when it was drawn to the attention of the Editors that not only was the Edited Guide currently devoid of entries on the great Vincent but also that you had written this splendid piece, they said, "We must have it at once!"

Of course "at once" has a different meaning for them - what they really meant was, "We'll send it to a sub-ed who'll 'correct' the spelling and probably take out all the best bits in an attempt to stamp their own massive ego on it, then when they eventually send it back in a few weeks we'll e-mail Emily and tell her to check out the front page because it'll be there and she'll be a star!"

So that's pretty much what'll happen. I think.

Anyway, a star is what you are. Thanks for this and congratulations. Now, what are you waiting for? Go off and write some more!


GVI

I've been to both the Amsterdam Van Gogh museum and the Kroller-Muller museum, and it must be said that the latter is a beautiful place. If I remember rightly it had some lovely examples of his early works, as well as working sketches. That said, there is an excellent floor in the Amsterdam museum containing some very interesting artifacts from Van Gogh's life, as well as sketchbooks etc. However, it must be said that I fell asleep whilst reading a catalogue there and was duly woken by a bemused warden...