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Example research essay topic: Van Gogh Organized Religion - 882 words

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In the 1800 's, scientists made many discoveries about light and its spectrum of colors. The Post-Impressionists were among the first artists in history to apply scientific laws of light and color to their art. They used the discoveries of physicists and chemists in choosing which colors to place side by side to create various artistic effects. For centuries, paints were made from things like ground up beetles, burnt bones, and different kinds of metal and even precious stones.

Some of the colors were bright, but many were muted and dull. In the mid- 1800 's, chemists found ways to produce many new and vibrant colors in their laboratories. The Impressionists and Post-Impressionists were the first artists to use these bright, new pigments. Van Gogh's early life provided little indication that he would later become an artist. As the son of a minister 1, he initially hoped to become an evangelist.

However, his years of attempted evangelism were something of a failure, despite his commendable efforts toward assisting humanity. Van Gogh had difficulty expressing him to others; his many failed attempts at love were further proof of this. As Robert Wallace stated, "Throughout his life Van Gogh was given to weaving dreams in which he saw the world not as it was but as he wanted it to be; when he exposed his dreams he was devastated to find that no one shared them (11). Hence, Van Gogh's ideals and his perceptions of the world differed from the way others perceived the world, and this made communication to most people challenging. This difficulty in communicating to the majority of the public made Van Gogh something of a poor minister, although sincere and well meaning.

As a result, Van Gogh ended his study of ministry. With his decision to become an artist, Van Gogh rejected organized religion, although his interest in a sort of spirituality did not diminish. Instead, his sense of spirituality became his artwork. As he had enjoyed sketching as a child, and his uncle was a respected art dealer, Van Gogh had always had some exposure to art. At the suggestion of his brother, Theo, to whom Van Gogh was especially close, Van Gogh became an artist; there has been much speculation about why Van Gogh made this decision. Art was regarded as a worthy cause in Van Gogh's family.

Since he had dismissed organized religion, Van Gogh perhaps resorted to art in order to bring himself closer to his family. Above all else, Van Gogh became an artist because he was able to communicate through this medium. Van Gogh's interest in art became a substitute for religion in his life (Wallace 16). His spirituality became more personal, perhaps, as it was based more on his own artwork, his new form of communication, and less on his failed ministry.

Van Gogh's artwork and taste evolved dramatically during the ten years of his career. Early in his career, Van Gogh's taste was somewhat inconsistent. He admired Rembrandt's Jewish Bride, but he also enjoyed the work of sever along-forgotten graphic artists whose work appeared in magazines. The common denominator in his early influences was the theme of destitution; he was more influenced by the destitution depicted in a work than the style of the painting. Hence, Van Gogh's early taste was more focused on subject than on style or the artist's portrayal of the subject (Wallace 10). During his career, this belief grew.

Although Van Gogh's work expresses a consistent commitment toward an interest in its subject, his later works express the fascination with color he developed as a result of his encounters with Impressionism and the brilliant colors of Japanese artwork. In addition to a growing fascination with color, Van Gogh's style became more distinct and original as he grew older and, perhaps, as his mind disintegrated. Whereas initially his style was somewhat traditional and unrefined, he eventually became interested in Seurat's Pointillist style; this possibly let to the swirling brush strokes that later became his signature. The early work of Van Gogh was characterized by images of destitution rendered in dark colors. Van Gogh's portrayal of peasantry is simple and candid; his early paintings generally depicted peasant lifestyle: working in the fields, chopping wood, or, in the case of this period's most famous piece, The Potato Eaters, eating potatoes. As Robert Wallace commented, an Gogh was intrigued by the clothes of the working peasants, for he felt that their faded homespun garments were revealing of their characters; he had no interest in seeing peasants in their "Sunday best."..

He wanted to show their human condition, not portray individuals. (22 - 23) As a result, Van Gogh's early work often is vague. Distinct facial features, for example, are often not shown on characters in his early paintings, although this may merely indicate his unrefined style and his undeveloped skill. It may also indicate his wish to portray the peasantry as a group of people, generally having similar lives, suffering from similar problems, and being faced with similar tasks. During these first five years of Van Gogh's artistic career, he lived in Holland.

After this period, he moved to Paris, where exposure to Impressionism caused Van Gogh to open his palette to the bright colors, which became characteristic of his later work.


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Research essay sample on Van Gogh Organized Religion

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