Vase with Chinese Asters and Gladioli by Van Gogh Postcard

Vase with Chinese Asters and Gladioli by Vincent Van Gogh, oil on canvas 1886, is a painting of a large bouquet of flowers set in a tall red vase against a dark, ruddy background. Painted the year that Van Gogh moved to Paris to study art in the academies and to absorb the lessons of the new Impressionist painters, the picture retains elements of the dark palette of his earlier Dutch period. A range of deep reds, crimson, and pink builds a crescendo of colour with contrasting cool tones, punctuated by brilliant white and yellow accents in the lively, expressive flower blossoms. Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890) was a Dutch painter of the Post-Impressionist movement known for bold, expressive drawing, swirling brushstrokes and intense, heightened colours. 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 sombre 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 colour 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.