Van Gogh and the kiddie and me

Suzanne is home from the hospital and will continue her antibiotic regime here for a bit longer.  Hopefully, she will continue to improve.  Thank all of you for the kind words and prayers.  They helped greatly.


Vincent Van Gogh is a particular favorite of both Suzanne and I.    Each of us has a favorite painting and I thought it would be nice to share them with you.

Mine is a painting called "Blossoming Almond Tree".  I think that one of the reasons I like this painting is because it was painted by the artist in celebration of the birth of the first child of his beloved brother, Theo.  The baby, a boy, was named Vincent and Van Gogh was named his godfather.    He painted this beautiful canvas to express his joy and hope for the health and happiness of this little boy.  After it was completed, he presented it to the parents with instructions to hang it above the baby's bed so he would be able to see it all of the time. In a letter written by Theo's wife to Vincent, she expresses the baby's delight in looking at the brilliantly colored work.    I like the idea that in a life that was filled with much sadness, much struggle, Van Gogh was able to paint something that represented joy and promise, it is rather like a symbol of his continued  hope.

Suzanne's favorite is the painting considered to be  Van Gogh's most famous work," The Starry Night"., This beautiful and beguling piece was done by Vincent when he was staying in an asylum in Ste. Remy-de-Provence, France.

When I was a teen, Don MacLean wrote and performed a song called  "Vincent".  The songs lyrics are as follows - ,

Starry, starry night.

Paint your palette blue and grey,

Look out on a summer's day,

With eyes that know the darkness in my soul.

Shadows on the hills,

Sketch the trees and the daffodils,

Catch the breeze and the winter chills,

In colors on the snowy linen land.

Now I understand what you tried to say to me,

How you suffered for your sanity,

How you tried to set them free.

They would not listen, they did not know how.

Perhaps they'll listen now.

Starry, starry night.

Flaming flowers that brightly blaze,

Swirling clouds in violet haze,

Reflect in Vincent's eyes of china blue.

Colors changing hue, morning field of amber grain,

Weathered faces lined in pain,

Are soothed beneath the artist's loving hand.

Now I understand what you tried to say to me,

How you suffered for your sanity,

How you tried to set them free.

They would not listen, they did not know how.

Perhaps they'll listen now.

For they could not love you,

But still your love was true.

And when no hope was left in sight

On that starry, starry night,

You took your life, as lovers often do.

But I could have told you, Vincent,

This world was never meant for one

As beautiful as you.

Starry, starry night.

Portraits hung in empty halls,

Frameless head on nameless walls,

With eyes that watch the world and can't forget.

Like the strangers that you've met,

The ragged men in the ragged clothes,

The silver thorn of bloody rose,

Lie crushed and broken on the virgin snow.

Now I think I know what you tried to say to me,

How you suffered for your sanity,

How you tried to set them free.

They would not listen, they're not listening still.

Perhaps they never will...



Here is a lovely YouTube link to the song and the painting that you might enjoy -

http://youtu.be/nkvLq0TYiwI

(when you get there, click on fullscreen and click on delete annotations to see a collection of Vincent's beautiful work!)

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