Constructions of Artistic Creativity in the Letters of Vincent van Gogh

Artistic creativity is presently considered to be a multidimensional phenomenon that unfolds over time and is in constant conversation with the social and historical context of the artists, as well as their personal life experiences. This article adopts a narrative perspective and explores Vincent van Gogh’s understanding of the constructs of creativity as reflected in his letters to his brother Theo, friends, and other family members. To inquire into van Gogh’s correspondence, narrative thematic analysis was employed. Findings highlight the artist’s constructs around creativity, which seem to depict elements of both modern and post-modern views of creativity. Major themes include creativity as (a) a developmental, dynamic learning process characterized by dedication and persistence; (b) a relational process in the context of people and nature; (c) an embodied action; (d) an oscillation between asceticism and socio-cultural participation, (e) suffering, and (f) a larger-than-life force. With this study, we join the conversation of scholars around recent developments in the field of creativity, calling for a variety of perspectives and methodological approaches to this complex and multifaceted construct. Moreover, we hope to move beyond the ‘mad genius’ stereotype and myths around psychopathology and artistic creativity, as exemplified in the present analysis of van Gogh’s correspondence.

O espaço vivenciado e a paisagem de emoções na obra “A Arlesiana” de Vincent Van Gogh

O artigo tem como propósito apresentar os resultados de um estudo sobre vivências e paisagens elaborado a partir da obra “A Arlesiana”, de Vincent van Gogh. Este estudo trata tal representação como paisagem de emoção, que conforma a existência de Vincent van Gogh lhe atribuindo sentidos e significados a partir das experiências manifestadas em seu espaço vivenciado. Neste sentido, entendemos que as representações do espaço manifestadas nas pinturas de Vincent van Gogh se constituem como paisagens que, tomadas como formas simbólicas, conformam a vida do artista. Dessa forma, consideramos que o espaço simbólico atribui sentidos e significados à maneira como o espaço é vivenciado e representado pelos sujeitos.

Química e arte: uma simbiose de matar

Desde a antiguidade o ser humano usa a tinta. No início era composta de base natural e orgânica, como o sangue, com o passar do tempo, sua composição ficou mais complexa e perigosa (resinas, pigmentos, diluentes, solventes e aditivos). Elementos como o chumbo e o mercúrio apesar de tóxicos estavam presentes, no entanto, não era comum o uso de equipamentos de proteção ao manusear as tintas o que gerava riscos a sua saúde física e mental, podendo levá-los à loucura e a morte. O objetivo deste trabalho é entender o efeito do chumbo no organismo e relacioná-lo com a morte dos pintores Vincent van Gogh e Cândido Portinari. Para compreender o assunto, foi realizada uma pesquisa bibliográfica qualitativa. Nela descobriu-se que o chumbo afeta principalmente o sistema nervoso, mesmo em baixas concentrações. A intoxicação nos pintores ocorria por meio das tintas por via oral e respiratória, principalmente pelo uso frequente das cores amarela, branco e azul (altas concentrações). Conclui-se que houve intoxicação por chumbo no caso Portinari e, no que tange à Van Gogh há controvérsias, mesmo demonstrando sinais de intoxicação.

Logwood Writing Inks: History, Production, Forensics, and Use

In the 16th century, the Spanish brought logwood from Mexico to Europe. Its extract was used for textile dyeing. The French introduced the logwood tree to Western Hispaniola, which became Haiti in 1804. Around 1880, Haiti exported most of its logwood to France. In 1847, Runge introduced the black chrome-logwood ink as an alternative for iron-gall ink, because the latter attacked the steel writing nibs. The most important constituents of logwood are hematoxylin and hematein. Due to the profitable import conditions from Haiti, chrome-logwood ink became the cheapest and most commonly used black writing ink in France. This could explain why Vincent van Gogh, during his French period, used it for writing and drawing and why most of the French postcards from the first half of the 20th century, studied in this publication, were written with chrome-logwood ink, while most of the Dutch postcards were written with an iron gall ink.

The Van Gogh Enigma: Re-Mythifications of the Artist’s Genius in "Loving Vincent" and "At Eternity’s Gate"

Few painters have had as many films made about their lives as Vincent van Gogh. The interest in his story is due in part to the mystery surrounding his last days, in Arles, France. It is thus no coincidence that all the biopics about the Dutch painter focus on this stage of his life, including the recent works Loving Vincent (2017), an animated film by Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman, and Julian Schnabel’s At Eternity’s Gate (2018). A comparative study of these two feature films, representing two different aesthetic and dramatic approaches, is conducted in pursuit of the two objectives of this paper: to identify the conventions of the subgenre of the artist biopic; and consequently, to analyze how both films reflect on the artist’s creative practice in order to determine whether the film camera is in fact capable of capturing the brushstroke and the mystique of the genius.

El modo lírico en el cuadro de Vincent Van Gogh Botines con lazos y en el poema de Olga Orozco “Botines con lazos, de Vincent Van Gogh”

Según Kurt Spang las distintas artes —pintura, música, literatura, etc.— además de las características propias de cada una, presentan elementos esenciales comunes a todas ellas. Ello permite demostrar que las artes se relacionan entre sí de manera original y fecunda, tal como lo hacen las diferentes literaturas nacionales. En este sentido, Spang propone una serie de componentes o elementos esenciales a tener en cuenta para definir a qué modo pertenecen las distintas obras. En este caso nos detenemos en el modo lírico para demostrar que el cuadro Botines con lazos, de Vincent van Gogh, pertenece a la lírica, al igual que la poesía “Botines con lazos, de Vincent van Gogh,” de Olga Orozco.

Loving Vincent: Online Exhibition as an Innovative Form of Presenting Visual Art in Ukraine

The article considers the online exhibition and art events Loving Vincent as the relevant forms of exhibition of art works, the main idea of which is to promote the work of Vincent van Gogh and the art of the animated films in Ukraine. The aim of the paper isto highlight the importance of the latest forms of visual art representation in Ukraine on the example of the online exhibition Loving Vincent and a number ofrelated events dedicated to the world’s first full-length eponymous animated feature film about the life of Vincent van Gogh. The role of Ukrainian artists in the process of working on the film is also highlighted. The methodology of work includes a set of culturological and art research methods and approaches. In particular, empirical observations, analysis of the source base and video materials contribute to the comprehensive coverage of the process of organization and realization of the Loving Vincent exhibition. The interviews with the organizers, screenwriters, and artists helped to get a deep insight into the specifics of working on the film. Descriptive and analytical methods contributed to the formation of a comprehensive view regarding the innovative forms of representation of visual artworks in Ukraine. On the basis of factual material, a synthetic comprehension of problems and prospects of development ofsuch newest exposition forms as virtual excursions and online exhibitions were formed. Emphasis is also made on the participation of Ukrainian artists in the largescale international art projects that leads to the creation and development of new opportunities of the representation of contemporary art