Vincent Willem van Gogh was born on March 30, 1853, in Zundert, Netherlands. His father, Theodorus van Gogh, was a Protestant minister, and his mother, Anna Cornelia Carbentus, was a daughter of the "book-binder to the King" Willem Carbentus.
Vincent was given the name of his elder brother, who had died at birth a year before he was born. He had two junior brothers and three sisters, and was strongly attached to his brother Theo.
Young Van Gogh was brought up in a religious and strict atmosphere. He was severely punished by his grandmother at one time. He had a very uncontrollable temper, was highly emotional, and lacked self-confidence.
Van Gogh studied at the Royal Academy of Art in Brussels for six months in 1880 and 1881. In the summer of 1881, he fell in love with his widowed cousin, Kee Vos, but was cruelly rejected by her. This led to a violent quarrel with his father on Christmas, and he moved in with an alcoholic prostitute for a year.
In 1884, Van Gogh had a romance with a neighbor's daughter, who shared his interest in art, but their marriage was opposed by both families. This and the death of his father in March of 1885 caused depression. At that time, Van Gogh made his first major work, "The Potato Eaters".
In September of 1885, he was accused of making one of his sitters, a young peasant girl, pregnant and was ostracized by the local Church. He moved to Antwerp, where he studied color theory and painting at the Antwerp School of Arts, and matriculated in January of 1886.
From March 1886 to February 1888, Van Gogh lived in Paris, where he met the Impressionists, including Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, and others. The Impressionists' use of light and color inspired Van Gogh on updating his own palette.
In February of 1888, Van Gogh moved to Arles with a plan to found an art colony. His friend Paul Gauguin joined him in October, but their cooperation lasted only for two months. Van Gogh's mental state was alternating between fits of depression and lucidity. At times, his madness led to aggressive actions.
In December of 1888, Van Gogh attacked Paul Gauguin with an open razor, was stopped, but eventually cut part of his ear off and gave it to a prostitute. Paul Gauguin sent a note to his brother Theo and left forever. Theo immediately came to help. Van Gogh was sent to the state mental hospital of St. Paul in Saint Remy de Provence.
There he lived for a year and made some of his best works, including "Starry Night", "Vincent's Bedroom", and several paintings of Irises. Van Gogh was released in May of 1890 and moved to live in Auvers-sur-Oise under supervision of Dr. Gachet.
His health improved enough to give him energy for the most intensive work marathon. In just two months there, he painted ninety excellent works, including portraits of Dr. Gachet, landscapes, still-lives, and "Wheat Field with Crows".
In a state of depression, he went out into the wheat field and shot himself in the chest on July 27, 1890. Fatally wounded, Van Gogh died two days later in the arms of his brother Theo. He was laid to rest at the cemetery of Auvers-sur-Oise.
Van Gogh's disobedience drove his creativity towards new horizons. Although categorized as a Post-impressionist, Van Gogh pioneered the style of Expressionism and had a very important influence on 20th-century art. He influenced many artists and art movements, including Henri Matisse and the French Fauves, Ernest Ludwig Kirchner and German Expressionists, as well as Francis Bacon and other artists.
