Despite his extremely short career that lasted barely a decade, Van Gogh immortalised himself with his oeuvre of 900 paintings and more than 1,000 drawings and etchings
Much of Vincent Van Gogh’s early childhood days were spent wandering the countryside to observe nature, in his birthplace, the Netherlands, also the world’s largest flower exporter. The flower land’s influence in the Dutch maestro’s body of work is evident, which is regarded for its striking colour, emphatic brushwork and contoured forms.
Despite his extremely short career that lasted barely a decade, Van Gogh immortalised himself with his oeuvre of 900 paintings and more than 1,000 drawings and etchings. Born on March 30 in Zundert, the world-renowned artist, and one of the greatest Post-Impressionist, drew his inspiration from the striking landscapes in provinces such as Drenthe and Brabant.
In a press statement, the Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions says that many of these places remain practically untouched by time, which means that Van Gogh’s legacy is still reflected in the Dutch countryside.
Vincent’s dream
Etten-Leur has the largest Van Gogh Selfie Spot in the world, against a 12 x 12 metre wall
At the age of 28, it was in Etten that he registered as an artist, which was a turning point in his life. In the Van Gogh Church in Etten-Leur, visitors can learn about the beginning of his career. Divided into eight themes, this colourful and impressive exhibition explains what inspired the great artist. The nearby Leursestraatje is where Van Gogh drew the beautiful pollard willows. Part of this route is the largest Van Gogh Selfie Spot in the world, a 12 x 12 metre wall that is the ideal place to take a great picture.
From Etten-Leur, travellers can follow several cycling and walking routes past special places that inspired Van Gogh.
Sunflower fields
An ode to Vincent Van Gogh in his hometown, in the Bloemencorso Zundert, the largest flower parade in the world
His sunflowers may charm the world, the starry night may hypnotise viewers into a realm of infinite beauty, and yet, throughout his lifetime Van Gogh remained unknown with just one painting sold. Notwithstanding, he developed an unending love for nature in his youth and spent hours exploring the area around Zundert.
The Vincent van Gogh Huis is located on the spot where his birthplace once stood, the life of the young Van Gogh illustrated through digital presentations. It provides a glimpse into his uncle’s art dealership, the artist’s struggle with religion and how the rest of his family fared. The art centre is located on the spot where Vincent was born. As a testament to his influence, modern and contemporary artists who were inspired by Van Gogh are also given a spotlight. There are also various temporary exhibitions by artists from the 20th and 21st centuries who were inspired by Van Gogh.
Nature aficionado
In many of his letters, Vincent mentions that he liked to go out on long trips through the woods and heathlands, past fields and marshes
The idyllic setting of Brabant, where he lived most of his life and found his identity as a person and an artist, indelibly influenced his work. His love for nature, farm life and the authentic human being are recurring themes in his work and he left his mark throughout the region.
Vincent had time and again depicted his love for nature in his paintings as well as his letters
When his brother, Theodorus van Gogh was depressed, Vincent advised his brother to head out into nature. “Keep on walking a lot and maintain your love of nature, for that is the true way to get a greater understanding of art. Painters understand & love nature & teach us to see,” Van Gogh said.
Nature, linked to religion, played a major role in the Van Gogh family, who regularly went for strolls on the Brabant estates of De Moeren and Wallsteijn. Vincent also liked to go out on long trips through the woods and heathlands, peat fields and marshes.
‘Indescribable beauty’
Vincent was very inspired by the barges, peat fields and farm life of Drenthe
After having worked in various jobs, he decided to be an artist and sought inspiration from the wild, rugged landscape and the Drenthe peat workers. He was about 30 year old at the time and had just broken off a love affair. Once in Drenthe, the landscape and daily toil of the farmers and peat workers made a great impression on the sensitive young man.
He wrote about 23 letters during this time, which contained anecdotes and impressions of the Drenthe landscape and farm life. From there, he continued on by barge to the peat regions in the southeast, enthusiastic about the landscape. The place was ‘indescribable beauty’, he wrote, with ‘Don Quixote-like mills or eccentric colossi of drawbridges’ profiling their ‘whimsical silhouettes against the teeming evening sky’. One of the historic barges from this period is still in service, where visitors can sail along on the snikke ‘Johannes Veldkamp’, an old-fashioned sailboat.
The first masterpiece
It was in Nuenen that the artist finally found his masterpiece
The picturesque Nuenen, then a quaint village, was a crucial destination in his artistic development. It allowed him to explore his interest in depicting the lives of ordinary people. Van Gogh wanted to be a ‘Peasant Painter’ and made dozens of studies, drawings and paintings of farm workers, peasants and weavers. Dark spaces, in which people hunched over looms are captured by the lack of light. Hands, faces and still lifes, visitors can almost feel the chunky and heavy weight of a basket full of potatoes in his famed painting.
He painted many landscapes and portraits there, including the world-famous The Potato Eaters.
An Ode to the maestro
From his time in Neunen, Drawbridge in Nieuw-Amsterdam is probably the best known
In Nuenen, the artist finally found his niche. The years he lived there, from 1883 to 1885, were some of the most productive periods of his life. “I have had a more pleasant time with the people here lately than in the beginning, which means a lot to me…”, Van Gogh wrote.
His time in Nuenen resulted in about 40 paintings, of which Drawbridge in Nieuw-Amsterdam is probably the best known. But there is also Shepherd with Flock near a little Church at Zweeloo, a masterpiece depicting a Reformed church that still exists and where services are still held.
The Van Gogh Village Museum in Nuenen highlights Van Gogh’s life in Nuenen, his painter friends, his first masterpiece and the importance of the Brabant period in his entire oeuvre
Artist Daan Roosegaarde’s ‘Van Gogh Path’ is a glowing cycle path in an ode the maestro
Artist Daan Roosegaarde developed a 600-metre cycle path, the ‘Van Gogh Path’ near Eindhoven, the Dutch city of light. It is a twinkling path made of thousands coloured stones and inspired by a painting created by Vincent. The stones are charged by daylight and display fragments of the famous Starry Night painting by Van Gogh. This form of ‘techno poetics’ is the contemporary artist’s ode to the old Master.
Situated where Van Gogh was inspired and made a big part of his oeuvre, not only did Vincent paint his first masterpiece The Potato Eaters here, he also made paintings of the Opwettense Watermolen and Collse Watermolen. The unique cycle path runs right between these two windmills.
