The Palette of Van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh’s Self Portrait from 1889 at the National Gallery of Art. Image Saxon Henry.

You can see the passion in Vincent’s stare. Is there a hint of malice or is it a touch of despair? He was certainly a tortured man, though such a talented one. I stood and stared at this self-portrait hanging in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, for quite some time one summer afternoon—unable to take my eyes off the swirling atmosphere, the runnels of color streaming down his shoulders,...