Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh may well be the most famous and greatest innovative painter ever brought forth by the Netherlands. The intense colours and unpretentious aura of his works touch countless people throughout the world. The artist himself enjoyed little of his success, which reached near mythical proportions only after his death in 1890.

In addition to several drawings, prints and an early landscape, the Rijksmuseum owns a superb, expressive self-portrait of Van Gogh. He painted it in Paris in 1887 when his artistic development began to gain momentum. Looking at the self-portrait, it is as though we come face to face with the artist himself, with his familiar red beard and vivid green eyes. His personal and artistic struggles are almost tangible.

In this edition of the Rijksmuseum Series, author Esther Dieltjes tells the story about Van Gogh's tragic life and his artistic quest, based on his Self-Portrait.