Portraits Vincent van Gogh Painted

Vincent Van Gogh is one of the most famous Dutch painters who implemented post-impressionist ideas into his paintings. However, owing to the rise in photography, van Gogh like other artists of the time, had to infuse a personal touch into their paintings.

 

Vincent van Gogh's drawings describe the ideas and feeling behind his subject instead of trying to imitate their exact look. In Vincent van Gogh's artwork, he conveyed his perception of the subject by engaging highlights, vigorous brushstrokes, and emphasizing certain hues. We've put together some of these Vincent van Gogh drawings in a famous van Gogh paintings list. 

 

The List of Vincent Van Gogh Paintings Names

Here's a short Vincent van Gogh paintings names list:

• Self-portrait 1889

• Portrait of Lucien Martin 1886–87 

• Mother by a Cradle, Portrait of Leonie Rose Davy-Charbuy (1887)

• Portrait of a One-Eyed Man 1888

• Portrait of Père Tanguy 1887-88

 

Self-Portrait 1889

This painting was one of the last Vincent van Gogh drawings he made before he ended his life. It is a self-portrait he sent to his mother as a present on her birthday and is the last self-portrait he painted. 

 

The expertise in brushstrokes and lighting study isn't the only thing that makes this portrait one of the most famous Vincent van Gogh artwork. The other factor that makes it notable is the contrast between reality and the artist's intention. 

 

This self-portrait shows van Gogh as clean-shaven, with his hair slicked back, gazing intensely, and in good health. What's striking about the idea behind this portrait is that contrary to what the painting suggests, Vincent was far from healthy. The deceptive contrast is absent from other Vincent Van Gogh portrait list names.

Self-portrait, 1889 - Vincent Van Gogh

 

Portrait of Lucien Martin 1886–87 

Having people who support you as an artist is always a huge plus. Vincent van Gogh had such support in the person of Lucien Martin, the subject of this beautiful portrait. Lucien Martin was the owner of a restaurant in Paris. He was also an ardent supporter of young artists at the time and allowed them to exhibit their works in his restaurant from time to time. 

 

In November 1887, Vincent van Gogh and his friend exhibited their works at the restaurant. Unfortunately, Van Gogh didn't sell any of his drawings as there's so little a platform like a restaurant could do if the audience didn't like the painting already. 

 

Van Gogh painted this portrait of Lucien Martin with precision, care, and respect. With his soft strokes and choice of hue for the clothes, skin tone, and background, these Vincent van Gogh drawings describe Martin as a kind and compassionate man.

 

Mother by a Cradle, Portrait of Leonie Rose Davy-Charbuy (1887)

One notable thing you'll learn from the list of famous van Gogh paintings is that he loved to paint beyond one subject. If he painted a welcoming man, he would paint his wife too. And if you're kind to him, he would likely paint you or someone close to you.

 

Pierre Firmin-Martin was an art dealer and a friend of van Gogh's brother, Theodore. Not many dealers like to display Vincent van Gogh's drawings, but Firmin-Martin did. Firmin-Martin has a niece called Leonie Rose Davy-Charbuy, who lives with him. 

 

Mother by a Cradle is a painting of Leonie Rose sitting beautifully in her Uncle's living room. The background featured paintings that hung on the living room wall, owing to the family's interest and dealings in art portraits. 

 

The same year that van Gogh finished the drawings, his brother, Theodore van Gogh reportedly said that Vincent did a great job painting his portraits. Vincent, however, didn't ask for a payment, including payment for the painting he'd done for Leonie Rose. 

Portrait Of A One Eyed Man - Vincent Van Gogh

 

Portrait of a One-Eyed Man 1888

The Saint-Paul asylum in Saint-Rémy was a constant factor in van Gogh's life, especially during his last years. He spent some time there due to some mental health struggles. Portrait of a One-Eyed Man is a painting of a patient at the Saint-Paul asylum and also possesses symbolic meaning as the self-portrait on this van Gogh paintings list.

 

True to the van Gogh style in his most famous Vincent van Gogh artwork, Vincent used sweeping brushstrokes to draw the eyes in this painting of the patient. The background was painted a sickly, clinical green, and his coat was a dark gray. 

 

Among the Vincent van Gogh paintings listed in this article, this portrait represents the time the artist spent in the asylum and his current state of mind. In a letter to his mother, Vincent said," at the moment, I am working on a portrait of one of the patients here. It is odd that if one is with them for a time and has grown used to them, one no longer thinks them mad." 

 

Portrait of Père Tanguy 1887-88

Pere Julien Tanguy was a Breton man who was exiled after participating in the Paris Commune but was later pardoned and allowed to live freely. Tanguy remained in Paris and opened an art supply shop. It was from here that Vincent van Gogh met the art store owner. 

 

Before this last one, van Gogh had done two other paintings, but the 1888 portrait of Pere Tanguy is by far the most impressive. Vincent painted Tanguy from a frontal perspective, similar to how images were photographed.

 

Vincent van Gogh also surrounded his subject with portraits, objects familiar to Tanguy as an art supply seller. This style of including random things from the subject's life in the background was a popular feature in portraits of the time.

 

The first portrait of Pere Tanguy was created between 1886 and 1887 and was done in the usual van Gogh manner of a colored background without objects. The second portrait, executed between 1887 and 1888, is similar to the final portrait but lacks the vibrancy and careful maturity present in the last portrait.

Conclusion

Vincent van Gogh painted hundreds of beautiful portraits. Some represented the subjects, while others communicated creative and artistic intent, like his self-portrait and portrait of the one-eyed man. If you want to create art like van Gogh, you should include these paintings in your study time.