Vincent Van Gogh

A beautiful, one-of-a-kind collection of more than 150 of Van Gogh's letters, paired with more than 250 works of art. Vincent Van Gogh wrote hundreds of letters to his brother Theo, as well as to family members and fellow artists including Paul Gauguin and Emile Bernard. In many of them he described, in painstaking detail and beautiful prose, the progress of his work. Van Gogh's Letters presents more than 150 of these stirring letters, excerpted and newly translated, and set side-by-side with the art it describes, including sketches, drawings, and paintings. The result is an elegantly rendered collection that allows us to see the world through the eyes of one of the greatest artists of all time.

Vincent van Gogh is best known for two things - his sunflowers and his ear-cutting. But there are many other ways of knowing this remarkable son of a Dutch pastor, who left his chill homeland for the sunshine of Arles in the South of France; and left us over a thousand frank letters of struggle and joy, to help us glimpse his inner world. Vincent came late to painting after spending time in London trying to be a Christian missionary. And though he is now amongst the most famous artists on earth, in his day, no one saw him coming - apart from one French art critic called Aurier. It is possible he never sold one of his paintings in his life time. When he discovered the sun in Arles, he also discovered energy. Yellow for him was the colour of hope, and in his last two years he painted almost a canvass a day. But hope ran out on July 27th , 1890 when he shot himself, aged 37. He was at this time six months out of a mental institution, where perhaps he experienced his greatest calm. Vincent compared himself to a stunted plant; damaged by the emotional frost of his childhood. 'Conversations with Van Gogh' is an imagined conversation with this remarkable figure. But while the conversation is imagined, Van Gogh's words are not; they are all authentically his. "Speaking with Vincent - which he insists on being called - was a privilege,' says Simon Parke. 'He's endlessly fascinating, contradictory, moving, funny, insightful and tragic. There's a fury in him; but also a great kindness. He found harmony in human relationships elusive; his love life was a painful shambles. But with colour, he was a harmonic genius, and he has much to say about this. And here's the thing: for a man who killed himself - he died in the arms of his brother on July 29th - spending time with him was never anything but life-affirming.'

A unique picture book that pairs the vibrant, colourful paintings of Vicent van Gogh with the artist's own words, taken from a letter to his brother Theo. Simple rhyming text intoduces children to the colurful world of art and the concept of colour. This book will appeal to lovers of art of all ages.

En bok som fått titeln Vincent van Gogh: De sista sjuttio dagarna. Van Gogh bodde de sista sjuttio dagarna av sitt liv i byn Auvers strax norr om Paris. Han var inne i ett rasande produktivt skede av sitt korta liv. På dessa 70 dagar målade han mer än 70 stora oljemålningar, mer än en stor tavla om dagen. Han hade nyligen tagit sig igenom sin värsta psykotiska kris och fick nu uppleva en kort hoppfull tid som slutade tvärt när han ändade allt med en revolverkula den 29 juli 1890. Från Auvers skrev han också ett antal mycket intressanta brev, av vilka 24 finns bevarade. 15 är till brodern Theo, sex till systern och modern, ett till Paul Gauguin, ett till värdparet Ginoux som han tidigare hade hyrt av och ett till en konstkritiker Isaäcson. Denna bok innehåller samtliga dessa brev, för första gången i svensk översättning, samt alla skisser och teckningar som ingår i breven. Dessutom återger vi i färg åtta av de oljemålningar som omtalas i breven.

Vincent van Gogh evolved a vibrant technique, characterized by bold, slashing strokes. This collection of bookmarks includes details from 12 of his most revolutionary works, among them Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, Sunflowers, Starry Night, Café Terrace on the Place du Forum, Arles, At Night, Irises, The Night Café, and Portrait of Doctor Gachet.

The universal appeal of Vincent's paintings and drawings, those that are little known as well as those familiar and much loved images, is enhanced by his own account of his life and thought contained in his letters. In quantity and quality of writing they are unique among those of great artists. Most were written to Theo - his brother, patron and anchor and to him we owe an enormous debt for encouraging, supporting and preserving the writings and works of a troubled genius who, in a tragically brief ten years, progressed to a climax of highly original and productive creativity. This selection of extracts from the letters and more than 230 paintings and drawings - many reproduced for the first time - has been designed for all lovers of Vincent's work. It will appeal equally to those who are familiar with it and his life and who no longer need biographical or analytical texts to complete their enjoyment of the pictures as well as to the many with less knowledge who feel no less intensely the power of his art.

This selection of letters written by Vincent van Gogh was compiled by Professor Mark Roskill, who contributes an introduction and notes, also includes the memoir of van Gogh written by his sister-in-law.