Olive Trees, Vincent Van Gogh, 1889
By Bo
The Olive Trees by Vincent Van Gogh is part of a series of five paintings he did in 1889. He painted this work during the time he spent at the St Paul-de Mausole Asylum in Saint Remy-de Provence (Stamm p367). The work features lines, dots, waves, solid colors. Movement is created by circular lines and dots. The colors range from purple, green, red and beige, the natural mixed with the unnatural to create the scene of the olive trees. Thick impasto gives this paining texture and a feeling of being alive. There is some smudging, glossy rich colors at the bottom half of the painting and lighter more calm colors at the top half of the canvas.
Van Gogh employs rhythm to create movement using dots and lines in this work. The painting is almost completely composed of lines and dots. The use of impasto makes the viewer curious of how it would feel to the touch. The paint is carefully placed in other areas and in some areas has it been brushed or smudged. The smudged paint creates a sense of movement as if birds were flying through the sky. The dots, lines and form give the trees a sense that they are lifting off into the sky.
The trees almost divide the canvas into half, to the foreground the dirt, in earthy but also purple and red. Then the sky in shades of blue, pink and yellow. The trees cut across the canvas almost evenly giving this work balance. After looking at the work, one comes to appreciate the techniques used to make this painting so vibrant and allow it to provoke so many feelings.
I chose this work because I have had a very negative reaction to Van Gogh’s work in the past. I have found his most popular works unpleasing to the eye and overstimulating to the brain. I challenged myself to take a long look at the Olive Trees to see if there could be a change in my opinion. Without knowing Van Gogh’s past, I felt as though he was projecting his inner turmoil onto his work. With further inspection I began to see the technical skill that was needed to produce this painting. After much reading about Van Gogh’s life and time I have come to appreciate this work and the details that make it so unique.
Van Gogh left an amazing body of work, but most of all, he’s complicated mental illness has brought about major research in the field of psychiatry, psychology and art. Doctors have diagnosed him with illnesses ranging from epilepsy to mania. (Mota) His childhood and subsequent life experience and adulthood have been a subject of study for artists, psychiatrists and psychologists since 1890. Between the years 1889 and 1890 he produced his most iconic works and made a major contribution to the art world. Van Gogh was also an avid writer, often sending letters to his brother Theo. These letters have been adapted into literary works. Many writers, historians and mental health researchers have benefited from this piece of his life. “Van Gogh’s tortured life has been well described by his biographers, Tralbaut, H. R. Graetz, Nagera, Meyer Shapir and others.” (Stamm)
To conclude, Vincent Van Gogh has contributed to art, culture, literature, science, medicine and much more. His unfortunate life early life, mental illness and circumstances around his death in 1890 are still being studied today. Over one hundred years have passed, and his work is still as powerful as ever. It still activates the mind and provokes strong reactions which may leave you questioning your own mental state.
References
Pedro Mota, Creativity and Mental Illness: Vincent van Gogh as the Archetypal Figure, Journal of Psychohistory
Julian L Stamm, Vincent Van Gogh: Identity Crisis and Creativity, Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press
