Van Gogh and the Artists He Loved

by Steven Naifeh

The compelling story of how Vincent van Gogh developed his audacious, iconic style by immersing himself in the work of others, featuring hundreds of paintings by Van Gogh as well as the artists who inspired him--from the New York Times bestselling co-author of Van Gogh: The Life.

Vincent van Gogh's paintings look utterly unique--his vivid palette and boldly interpretive portraits are unmistakably his. Yet however revolutionary his style may have been, it was actually built on a strong foundation of paintings by other artists, both his contemporaries and those who came before him.

Now, drawing on Van Gogh's own thoughtful and often profound comments about the painters he venerated, Steven Naifeh gives a gripping account of the artist's deep engagement with their work. We see Van Gogh's gradual discovery of the subjects he would make famous, from wheat fields to sunflowers. We watch him experimenting with the loose brushwork and bright colors used by Édouard Manet, studying the Pointillist dots used by Georges Seurat, and emulating the powerful depictions of the peasant farmers painted by Jean-François Millet, all vividly illustrated in nearly three hundred full-color images of works by Van Gogh and a variety of other major artists, including Claude Monet, Paul Gauguin, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, positioned side by side.

Thanks to the vast correspondence from Van Gogh to his beloved brother, Theo, Naifeh, a Pulitzer Prize winner, is able to reconstruct Van Gogh's artistic world from within. Observed in eloquent prose that is as compelling as it is authoritative, Van Gogh and the Artists He Loved enables us to share the artist's journey as he created his own daring, influential, and widely beloved body of work.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, History, Biography, Art and Photography, Historical, Biography Memoir

448 pages, Hardcover

First published November 2, 2021

Reviews

[Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you, Random House, for the gifted book.

Van Gogh is definitely one of my favorite artists, and my favorite paintings by him are Irises (he has several) and The Starry Night. And Cafe Terrace at Night. I’ll stop! 😂

This is a stunning, full color, extra large book (think coffee table-sized) I’m so grateful to own. The author, Steven Naifeh, uses Van Gogh’s own words to share the inspiration behind his style. According to the author, he had influences even though his style was absolutely his own. In particular, the author uses letters between Van Gogh and his brother, Theo.

I love art and I love history, so when the two join up, I am enthralled, and that was certainly the case here. Steven Naifeh is a Pulitzer Prize winner, and this is a remarkable, inspiring, and fascinating book.

Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader

[Kendall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as a giveaway book! Great insight into the life of van gogh. He is my favorite artist and Iam going ti cherish this book forever.

[Julie Stielstra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful piece of work, and a labor of love in more ways than one. Artist, art historian, and biographer Steven Naifeh has put together an opulent assemblage of chapters discussing Vincent Van Gogh's artistic influences: artists and works that delighted him, taught him, and inspired him, from academics and old masters like Gerome, Holbein, Rembrandt, and Ruisdael; through locals like his cousin Mauve and regional schools like the Barbizon painters and the Hague School; to the Impressionist, Symbolist, Cloisonnist and other contemporaries like Gauguin, Lautrec, Signac, and Serusier, as well as Japanese prints and English magazine illustrations. Arranged thematically, Naifeh demonstrates how these other artists influenced and dazzled Vincent in how he saw, experienced and painted human figures, flowers, landscapes, skies, seas, trees, books, and religious belief. Naifeh expertly shows us unexpected and wonderfully apt correspondences, such as Luke Fildes's poignant drawing of Charles Dickens's empty chair after his death, and Vincent's lurid armchair vacated by Gauguin after their rupture; or a Decamps "Orientalist" courtyard opposite Vincent's blazing Arles "Yellow House." Many of the gorgeous color plates are captioned with comments from Vincent himself, underlining his thoughts about them.

As I paged through the book, admiring many pictures I was not familiar with, I began to notice... wait, Naifeh and his partner Gregory White Smith own this painting? And this one, and that one, and that print? Holy smoke... In a final chapter, Naifeh describes his ventures with Smith (in work, art, and life - they were together for 40 years until Smith's death from a brain tumor in 2014), in researching and writing their acclaimed biographies of Jackson Pollock and Van Gogh, and their tiptoeing into collecting. Clearly they had more money than he modestly cares to admit, but they also had taste, knowledge, and passion. So this book is also a showcase for the wonderful works they have collected. I'm also quietly glad to find someone who seems to share my furtive admiration of Gerome. (In spite of the often icky subject matter, nobody can paint sighthounds or big cats like Gerome!)

Though Naifeh credits Smith with the writer's gift, his own language often sings with color and admiration. The plates are rich, plentiful, well-arranged. This volume is a pure pleasure and belongs in any art history collection.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just realized this book never was listed on my Goodreads shelves.
This book was my favorite book this year. It was beautifully and thoughtfully put together. You do not need to have read a biography of Van Gogh to appreciate this book.
It is not a pretty coffee table book, it is a wonderful account of Van Gogh’s life through the artists who influenced him and their works of art too.
And it is beautiful enough to be a coffee table book, but don’t just sit it down, read it and enjoy the pictures too.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Van Gogh: The Life, I find this book an added treat. Very Interesting, hundreds of reproductions including the works of artists that influenced him. Very nice!

[Pat Painter · Rating 5 out of 5]

comparing artists.

I loved this book. The comparisons between the works of those who influenced. Van Gogh and those he influenced was fascinating. He was such a complicated man. The world is lucky Jo Van Gogh was there.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was beautiful - I loved that the art was good-sized and not teeny tiny. The text was interesting and I relished seeing so much more of Van Gogh's art than I knew existed - plus other artists as well. A true treat!

[Chriss Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find this book enjoyable as it provides me with additional insights into Van Gogh's life, including the numerous artists he admired, collected, and briefly associated with.

The narrative structure of the book resembles that of a movie, as the authors frequently discuss Van Gogh's past and future. While this approach can be confusing at times, it ultimately makes sense when considering Van Gogh's timeline.

Although it is not an easy read, as an artist, I appreciate the perspectives of both collectors and art enthusiasts who solely collect art.

Overall, I find the book intriguing, albeit somewhat slow-paced. However, I value its detailed and attentive portrayal of Van Gogh's life.

[Jessica Norton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always been fascinated by Van Gogh because his style contrasts so greatly with artists of his time. He has seemingly always been painted as an insufferable loner, driven mad by his depth and impatient need to create. This book, though affirming the fact that he was often lonely and stubborn, revealed a side of the artist desperate to fit in and learn from the artists around him. He often studied with men he admired, taking on their style and praising their works in his letters to Theo. I was struck by how wrong I was in assuming that he preferred to work alone as the rebellious, superior artist. On the contrary, he begged artists to join together and mirrored their works, often humbly lauding them as the greater painters. However, despite how human he was in his desire to belong, his mental health and impatience would ultimately destroy nearly every relationship feebly secured.

As I said, I’m fascinated by Van Gogh, but I’ve never particularly loved looking at his artwork. The childlike simplicity of form and bright colors.. I was surprised to find multiple works I really liked in the pages of this book, however, and I have a much greater appreciation for how much depth he brought to his craft. My favorite part of the book was studying the paintings of countless artists he brushed shoulders with. The authors often included both the original art from those he admired, and his rendition placed next to it. Underneath the two were snippets of his letters to Theo about the art and artists. I was surprised at how fully Van Gogh appreciated the work of others and how beautifully he was able to write about it all.

[Rebecca Yang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Van Gogh is one of my favorite artists, so this book was a joy to read. I’ve seen his work at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam several times, in art museums around the world, and visited the places he stayed at and painted in Provence. This book brings to life this great artist, his social and professional relationships, and how different art movements influenced his work. It’s tragic that he felt like a failure and was rejected personally and professionally during the time he lived in, since his work is widely embraced and loved by people all over the world long after his death. It’s also incredible that he was so prolific as an artist even though he only lived to be 37 years old.

A great book to read if you love Van Gogh!

[Ellen Woodoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gorgeous book has large reproductions of many works of Van Gogh and the artists he admired. It is a remarkably researched book - a hallmark of the author. Not a redo of Van Gogh A Life, this book delves even deeper into the mind and art of the artist. Naifeh also writes about the experiences he had with husband Gregory White in building their astounding collection. I highly recommend it.

[Adina Hamik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my last study book of Vincent and I found a well rounded and sometimes overlooked how much Vincent admired , imitated and longed to be like his peers... This book helped summarize the artists that truly impacted some of his famous art pieces. Well worth the read and not the glance of photos.

[Andrea Engle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anchored in Van Gogh’s extensive correspondence, this well-illustrated volume juxtaposes beloved art by the famous and obscure with Van Gogh’s work reflecting their influence … separated into various areas, such as “Peasant Life,” “The Barbizon School,” “The Sea,” and so on … contains magnificent color plates …

[Mike Dettinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really a more “ efficient” way into van Gogh’s mind, history and work than the real biographies. What you really want to know is here.

I read this on my iPad which gave great access to all the paintings and comparisons, but the paintings were not interspersed in the text discussions/descriptions in this format, so that’s a problem.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book and its format—each chapter was about an artist/art school, location, or subject that inspired Van Gogh. It has beautiful graphics, photos, and paintings, and I learned about a few new Dutch artists myself.

[Sean Lassiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brief but beautiful look at the artists that inspired Vincent. Some of them he personally knew, some of them he did not, but they each had their unique impact on him. It was also wonderful to learn that it was in fact his sister-in-law, Theo’s wife, Johanna Van Gogh-Bonger, who carried his work into the 20th century and made elevated him to the status we know today.

[Timothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sumptuous contextual study of Van Gogh with side by side comparisons of his work and those who influenced him. I read this in digital form and colors were breathtaking! My favorite chapter was the on impressionism! If you love art or Van Gogh , or both -- this is for you!

[Elissa T · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to this through an audio book and I think that's where I messed up. A lot of the artists that were mentioned are French and I found myself getting tripod up trying to remember who is who in the story.

[Istvan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Into his mind through his eyes - masterful read!

A great complement to “Van Gogh, A life”. Wonderful insights into his interests and influences. A look inside his mind, not unlike reading his letters. Bravo!

[Magpie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Logged for Kylie 2022

[Jenny Rekeweg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this perspective to Van Gogh’s art.

[Vicky D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful,

[Pam Joseph · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring- but some interesting facts

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wanted to learn more about Van Gogh and prepare a bit for teaching art history this year and this book did the trick!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! A monument to the works that inspired Van Gogh. Beautifully written.

[Kirk Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful idea and very well executed. I wish this was part of a series.

[Cheryl Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful art and interesting insight into the artists

[David W · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful narrative. Offering more than an art history perspective, it weaves together a cohesive story of art styles and artists … I almost wished it never ends.

[Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book.

[M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply amazing!