Van Gogh's Chair by Vincent Van Gogh Poster

Van Gogh's Chair by Vincent Van Gogh, oil on canvas 1888, is a painting of the artist's humble, wooden cane-backed chair set in the corner of a room on a dusty tiled floor against a background of walls and a wood door. On the chair are Vincent’s pipe and a wrapper with a wad of fresh tobacco. In 1888, Van Gogh settled in Arles in the south of France where he opened his Yellow House studio, to which he invited Gauguin and other artists to come live and work. Van Gogh created this picture and a companion piece, Gauguin's Chair, as decorations for the new artist commune. The two paintings function as both portraits of the artists' contrasting personalities and their respective Post-Impressionist styles of painting. Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890) was a Dutch painter of the Post-Impressionist movement known for bold, expressive drawing, swirling brushstrokes and intense, heightened colors. In early adulthood Van Gogh worked as an art dealer, teacher and pastor before taking up the full time study of drawing and painting in his late twenties. Influenced by Rembrandt, the 19th century Realists and Barbizon school, Van Gogh's early paintings featured studies of workers and peasants in somber earth tones. Moving to France in 1886, Van Gogh met with the startling innovations of the Impressionist painters and began to apply their approach to color and subject matter, which continued into the mature style for which the artist is most renowned. Van Gogh produced many hundreds of drawings and paintings including portraits, landscapes, still life and flower paintings, and numerous self-portraits that became a dominating influence on the modern art of the 20th century and made him one of the most popular artists of all time.