His Most Famous Painting - The Potato Eaters - Vincent Van Gogh
Ace Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh painted "The Potato Eaters" in 1885, during his stay in Nuenen, The Netherlands.
He began to work on this 82 cm × 114 cm oil on canvas painting on April 13, 1885 and finished it by the beginning of May in the same year.
In "The Potato Eaters," Van Gogh portrayed a very realistic picture of the peasants' life.
He wanted to portray the contrasting lives of poor peasants and those monetarily even.
Van Gogh used earthy colors to achieve a serious mood in the "The Potato Eaters.
" The scene in the painting depicts a peasant family sharing a humble meal of potatoes.
The family is gathered around a withered square table and the adults look worn out after a long day of working in the fields.
An oil lamp placed above the square table is the only source of light in the dark room.
The light from the lamp focuses on the bowl of potatoes, as if drawing home the fact that the workers toil hard each day for their meals.
Their untidy clothes, the dirty linen cloth on the table, and the smoky bare walls, reflect a lack of luxury and refinement in the low class peasants' life.
There are five figures in the painting, three women, one man, and a little girl.
They are all dressed in peasant clothes.
The man is seated on the left side of the table and has a calm and resilient look on his face.
The woman seated in front of the man is possibly his wife.
Her face shows eagerness and affection as she is serving the man.
The older woman seated next to her seems absorbed with her meal and in deep conversation.
Another older woman seated on the right bears a bitter and frustrated expression, while she pours a coffee like liquid into cups.
The Center of the painting shows the backside of a little girl, engrossed in eating.
Van Gogh placed the little girl right at the centre of the painting, maybe to indicate that she remains untouched by the emotions of the rest of the family.
The weather beaten faces, the dirty caps, and the rough hands with boney fingers are all the proof of the harsh laborious lives the peasants lead to put an honest meal on the table.
"The Potato Eaters" painting was the reason for causing a rift in Gogh's friendship with Anthon Van Rappard.
Van Rappard believed that Vincent had done a poor job at the painting.
He commented the figures in the painting were ugly and appeared posed and superficial.
The only other people who saw the painting were Theo (Vincent's brother), his 'Impressionist' enthusiast neighbor Alphonse Portier, and his old artist friend Charles Serret.
"The Potato Eaters" was Vincent Van Gogh's ambitious attempt to prove his worth in the art world.
Although, today the art community considers this painting as one of Van Gogh's first masterpieces, it was never appreciated in his lifetime.
"The Potato Eaters" is housed at the Van Gogh Museum of Amsterdam.
He began to work on this 82 cm × 114 cm oil on canvas painting on April 13, 1885 and finished it by the beginning of May in the same year.
In "The Potato Eaters," Van Gogh portrayed a very realistic picture of the peasants' life.
He wanted to portray the contrasting lives of poor peasants and those monetarily even.
Van Gogh used earthy colors to achieve a serious mood in the "The Potato Eaters.
" The scene in the painting depicts a peasant family sharing a humble meal of potatoes.
The family is gathered around a withered square table and the adults look worn out after a long day of working in the fields.
An oil lamp placed above the square table is the only source of light in the dark room.
The light from the lamp focuses on the bowl of potatoes, as if drawing home the fact that the workers toil hard each day for their meals.
Their untidy clothes, the dirty linen cloth on the table, and the smoky bare walls, reflect a lack of luxury and refinement in the low class peasants' life.
There are five figures in the painting, three women, one man, and a little girl.
They are all dressed in peasant clothes.
The man is seated on the left side of the table and has a calm and resilient look on his face.
The woman seated in front of the man is possibly his wife.
Her face shows eagerness and affection as she is serving the man.
The older woman seated next to her seems absorbed with her meal and in deep conversation.
Another older woman seated on the right bears a bitter and frustrated expression, while she pours a coffee like liquid into cups.
The Center of the painting shows the backside of a little girl, engrossed in eating.
Van Gogh placed the little girl right at the centre of the painting, maybe to indicate that she remains untouched by the emotions of the rest of the family.
The weather beaten faces, the dirty caps, and the rough hands with boney fingers are all the proof of the harsh laborious lives the peasants lead to put an honest meal on the table.
"The Potato Eaters" painting was the reason for causing a rift in Gogh's friendship with Anthon Van Rappard.
Van Rappard believed that Vincent had done a poor job at the painting.
He commented the figures in the painting were ugly and appeared posed and superficial.
The only other people who saw the painting were Theo (Vincent's brother), his 'Impressionist' enthusiast neighbor Alphonse Portier, and his old artist friend Charles Serret.
"The Potato Eaters" was Vincent Van Gogh's ambitious attempt to prove his worth in the art world.
Although, today the art community considers this painting as one of Van Gogh's first masterpieces, it was never appreciated in his lifetime.
"The Potato Eaters" is housed at the Van Gogh Museum of Amsterdam.