A Yellow House in Arles

Vincent Van Gogh has long been portrayed as a disturbed man. He was not, as his carefully written letters reveal. Letters that he sent to his brother Theo and fellow artists, such as Gauguin, Monet, and Pissaro, reveal a remarkable man of wit and intelligence His health led to the designation of emotional illness; in fact, he, in all probability, suffered from epilepsy and the results of syphilis from his frequent visits to the Moulin Rouge. His eccentricities brought him the wrong kind of attention, and in the end only his paintings were left to speak for him. The dark era that he helped to end ushered in the impressionists. In the end his use of color and light served to keep him alive in the heart of mankind, as only light and color can. His death was not meant to be, as he wanted desperately to live and to be loved but did not know how to find that within his world. His death was providential, as it continues to bring mystery to art as well as a continued awakening for all who view his work. If he had lived and found the love that he so craved, the colors that sounded the end of the Renaissance period may well have prevailed, and art as we know it would not exist. Like Christ he died for those he so dearly loved, and that death today brings the birth of joy to those who view his works, and the use of color in art has never been the same. He marched to the whip of destiny, and did so gladly.