Van Gogh: A Profound and Tormented Genius--His Life in Paintings [Paperback]

DK Publishing (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1999 | Series: DK Art Books

Despite a life of poverty and bouts of depression, Van Gogh produced vividly rich paintings with his expressive use of line and color. Explore the tragic world of this 19-century Dutch artist through his amazing landscape, self-portraits, and still lifes. The DK ArtBook series presents both the life and works of each artist within the cultural, social, and political context of their time. To make the books easy to consult, they are divided into three areas -- the life and works of the artist, historical and cultural background, and analysis of major works -- which are identifiable by side bands. Each spread focuses on a specific theme, with an introductory text and several annotated illustrations. Few art history texts contain such abundance of full-color illustrations. The index section is also illustrated and gives background information on key figures and the location of the artist's works.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 12 Up-- The visuals in these books are brilliant. The objects have a clarity that lift them off the page and make them seem three dimensional. The color paintings glow, and the details of the brush strokes are vivid. The incisive snippets of text equal the graphics. Personal belongings and artists' tools are photographed sharply: eye glasses, correspondence, photographs of relatives, palettes, brushes, and easels. A few photographs of the landscapes are shown for comparison to the canvasses, which are documented in stages from initial sketches to completed works. Several works in each volume are analyzed by closeups of the individual strokes, discussions of organizing principles of the paintings, and a breakdown of the pigments applied. Knowledgeable art enthusiasts will relish the intimacy of the visuals and the lucid writing that lightly touches upon the critical aspects of the works. Novices will hopefully be smitten by these sparkling gems of insight and be inspired to read further. Perspective has the broadest range, documenting four centuries of the scientific study and interpretation of the subject. The 27 mini-chapters have the character of an erudite illustrated dictionary of exceptional focus. Each volume has a location of works on exhibit section. Impressive! --Barbara Peklo Abrahams, Oneida City Schools, Manlius, NY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This new series analyzes the works of three of the greatest, most influential artists of the impressionist and post-impressionist eras. Using the same format, each volume combines concise biographical material with brilliant color illustrations identified by detailed captions to convey the lifestyles, influences, creative output, and unique accomplishments of the three painters at various stages. Along with reproductions of their major works, these books offer striking images of the artists' palettes and tools; the objects they immortalized in their masterpieces; and preliminary sketches, photographs, and documents. Segments of certain paintings are enlarged to show brushstroke techniques and pigment combinations. A brief chronology, the locations of the works presented, and a glossary conclude each volume. Although titles abound on these highly popular artists, the rich illustrations, informative text, and reasonable price recommend the series for public libraries.
- Joan Levin, MLS, Chicago
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT (May 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789441438
• ISBN-13: 978-0789441430
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,685,082 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WELL WRITTEN & ILLUSTRATED PLUS SUCCINCT INFO! FOR AGE 9-99!, December 9, 2000

By 

Soaring Heart - See all my reviews

This review is from: Van Gogh: Explore Vincent van Gogh's Life and Art, and the Influences That Shaped His Work (DK Eyewitness Books) (Hardcover)

First of all I must say anything DK Publishing touches turns to gold; and the same goes double to infinity for Vincent. You would not believe the information packed into this 64 page carry anywhere book full of photographs of family and places he lived, amazing sketches, personal belongings, influences, quotes, and over 70 of his most popular and beautiful paintings and so much more! This is for everyone! It does not include "Starry Night" however.

Here are the contents: 1 YOUTH AND FAMILY 2 LIFE IN ENGLAND 3 PREACHING AND POVERTY 4 THE IMAGE OF THE SOWER 5 ETTEN AND THE HAGUE 6 PEASANTS AT WORK 7 A LOVE OF NATURE 8 A MATTER OF FAITH 9 A PEASANT MEAL 10 ARRIVAL IN ANTWERP 11 THE ANTWERP ACADEMY 12 A PARISIAN EXPERIENCE 13 IMAGES OF PARIS 14 THE IMPRESSIONISTS 15 NEW APPROACHES 16 JAPANESE INFLUENCES 17 SUNFLOWERS 18 A STUDY IN YELLOW 19 THE LURE OF THE SOUTH 20 VAN GOGH AND GAUGUIN 21 A HEROIC SELF PORTRAIT 22 THE AFFLICTED ARTIST 23 NATURAL STUDIES 24 COPIES 25 PROVENCAL LANDSCAPE 26 AN ERRATIC RECOVERY 27 A RETURN TO THE NORTH 28 THE FINAL ACT 29 KEY DATES/ VAN GOGH COLLECTIONS 30 GLOSSARY/ WORKS ON EXHIBIT 31 INDEX/ ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

What makes this book so enjoyable is that it has it all. Most books I've seen on Vincent are either loaded with art but the book layout is impossible to read due to lack of organization; or the opposite--books with tons of information but nothing but black and white thumbnail sketches. This book is a gem; extremely colorful plus has some black and white-- but each and every page is fully organized and beautiful to read and look at. Bruce Bernard, you have got to be the most organized man in the universe! WOW!

A must own for anyone and everyone! Especially the beginner to intermediate van Gogh enthusiast, however; the personal belongings, photographs, quotes and succinctness of this book would be well appreciated by the most acumen of Vincent's studiers/admirers.

P.S. I highly recommend this book and any other of the series of Eyewitness books that strike your fancy. I also own book #25 Crystal and Gems. There are 110 different books from everything to Music, Fossils, Reptiles, Invention, Weather, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, Bible Lands, Volcano and Earthquake, Shark; Aztec, Inca and Maya; Castle, Pyramid, Ancient China, Archeology, North American Indian, Ocean, Battle, Witches and Magic-Makers, Space Exploration, Crime Detection, Force and Motion, Chemistry, Time and Space, Astronomy, Earth, Human Body, Medicine, Technology, Electronics, Renaissance, Impressionism, Goya, Manet, Monet, Leonardo & his times, Future, Mythology, Titanic, Football, Hurricane & Tornado, Presidents, Baseball....on and on! Oh I've got to buy a few more I see!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good things come in small packages, May 5, 2000

By 

David Brooks (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Van Gogh: A Profound and Tormented Genius--His Life in Paintings (Paperback)

For a smaller book designed to give a high level overview of Van Gogh's life and career as an artist, this book is surprisingly informative and well written. Van Gogh's life is covered in a well researched commentary and there are also sub-sections devoted specifically to "Masterpieces". The graphics are excellent and the analysis clear and concise. In terms of a good, brief overview of Vincent van Gogh, this book is first rate.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasing to the eye, July 22, 2005

By 

Heather A. Donn "art historian" (Detroit, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Van Gogh: Explore Vincent van Gogh's Life and Art, and the Influences That Shaped His Work (DK Eyewitness Books) (Hardcover)

This is an easy to read, summary of his life, with nice pictures and information.