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Van Gogh: The Life
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith, who galvanized readers with their Pulitzer Prize winning biography of Jackson Pollock, have written another tour de force an exquisitely detailed, compellingly readable portrait of Vincent van Gogh. Working with the full cooperation of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Naifeh and Smith have accessed a wealth of previously untapped materials to bring a crucial understanding to the larger-than-life mythology of this great artist: his early struggles to find his place in the world; his intense relationship with his brother Theo; and his move to Provence, where he painted some of the best-loved works in Western art. The authors also shed new light on many unexplored aspects of Van Gogh s inner world: his erratic and tumultuous romantic life; his bouts of depression and mental illness; and the cloudy circumstances surrounding his death at the age of thirty-seven. Though countless books have been written about Van Gogh, no serious, ambitious examination of his life has been attempted in more than seventy years. Naifeh and Smith have re-created Van Gogh s life with an astounding vividness and psychological acuity that bring a completely new and sympathetic understanding to this unique artistic genius. "NEW YORK TIMES "BESTSELLER Praise for "Van Gogh: The Life" Magisterial. Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times This generation s definitive portrait of the great Dutch post-Impressionist. "Time" "" A tour de force . . . an enormous achievement . . . Reading his life story is like riding an endless roller coaster of delusional highs and lows. . . . [A] sweepingly authoritative, astonishingly textured book. "Los Angeles Times" Marvelous . . . ["Van Gogh"] reads like a novel, full of suspense and intimate detail. . . . In beautiful prose, Naifeh and Smith argue convincingly for a subtler, more realistic evaluation of Van Gogh, and we all win. "The Washington Post" Brilliant . . . At once a model of scholarship and an emotive, pacy chunk of hagiography. "The Daily Telegraph "(London) A "NEW YORK TIMES" NOTABLE BOOK NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY "THE WASHINGTON POST THE WALL STREET JOURNAL SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE" NPR "THE ECONOMIST NEWSDAY" BOOKREPORTER"
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catiewithac
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Pickpick

I began to suspect this authoritative biography of Vincent had an agenda in the final third of the book. The authors certainly have a unique theory about the painter‘s fatal wound. Otherwise, this is an extraordinarily intimate look at one of the world‘s greatest artists. The nearly 1000-page book focuses on his life as an artist at some expense of Vincent‘s early years. But I, as most others, read about Vincent for the glorious paintings! 🌻

Megabooks Did they talk about how he could‘ve been killed rather than suicide. I read about that theory in 3y
catiewithac @Megabooks They did, but I agree with Van Gogh expert Martin Bailey on this one: suicide. 3y
64 likes2 comments
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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Finally finished. Took me a solid year and a half. Some of it is painful to read but his paintings are still some of the best ever made.

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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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What? I‘m totally working..🤷🏼‍♀️ look how busy I ammmm not..

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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Good day

gradcat 👋😊♥️ 5y
36 likes1 stack add1 comment
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rather_be_reading
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Pickpick

Book 66 of 2019
#ebook #netgalley
This book was very informative and interesting. I love learning the backgrounds and history of people so of course I loved this one.

StephanieGeiser I love Van Gogh! I definitely need to read this one. 5y
46 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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When the electricity goes out but you still want to read. Who else has been there? #thunderstorm

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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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I love spring break.

Judybskt I love Panera!! 5y
NatalieR Excellent book! 🎨 5y
43 likes2 comments
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NatalieR
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Pickpick

I finally finished this #chunkster before the end of the year. This book is amazing as it literally covers Vincent‘s entire life. I learned so much about this artistic genius. The authors provide all of the accounts about Vincent‘s death and offer their own opinion based on their research in an appendix. #LitsyAtoZ #MountTBR #Nonfiction2018 @BookishMarginalia

BookishMarginalia 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 5y
lukulamppu Uuuu that sounds really interesting! Congrats on finishing it!😄 5y
NatalieR @RosaS Thanks! 😊 5y
rather_be_reading 😍😍 5y
121 likes8 stack adds4 comments
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Tjackson
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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OMG - 976 pages! It will take me FOREVER to read this book!!!! It will take me at least 50 hours! I am the slowest reader ever!!!

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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Van Gogh is my favorite painter. I particularly love his paintings of flowers. This book is great!
#HopintoSpring
#Flowers
@vkois88
@alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

vkois88 My favorite!!! ❤ 6y
36 likes1 comment
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sirius.books
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Pickpick

Van Gogh: The Life by Steven Naifeh was captivating, detailed, and emotional. The author was able to chronicle the tragic life and death of Vincent Van Gogh in a way the evoked strong emotions and the ability to envision scenes from his life. Van Gogh‘s life was filled with grief and mental illness that no one understood and condemned him for. I also enjoyed the discussion at the end of the novel where they debated suicide vs accidental death.

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EKonrad
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Pickpick

This insanely detailed account of the painter‘s life is an insightful look into both the art world and the tumultuous life Van Gogh endured. Best of all, it gives a full account of the complicated relationship between Vincent and his brother Theo. Loved the inclusion of all the most famous works, but sometimes it did get bogged down in descriptions. Definite read for those interested in art! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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CharissaWeaksAuthor
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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Need Van Gogh recommendations! And....GO.

See All 10 Comments
Libby1 This one was AWESOME. 7y
CharissaWeaksAuthor @Libby1 @Jas16 Thank you!! Added! 7y
Gina I have read halfway through thus and I really love it so far! 7y
CharissaWeaksAuthor @Gina Oh Good! I am so fascinated by Van Gogh! 7y
CoffeeCatsBooks I have the 3 volume set of his letters but I highly recommend only reading a few at a time. Otherwise, it gets sooo depressing. 7y
65 likes1 stack add10 comments
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Ke633
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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We all know Van Gogh did a little bit of time traveling. 😋 #vangogh #doctorwho #timetravel #sizzlinsummerbooks I have always been fascinated by Van Gogh and that episode of doctor who made me cry which never happens. Thanks #BBC Flying #tardis I had to retake this bc I forgot the book. 😂😂

MallenNC I loved that episode! It made me cry too, especially when they came to the museum 7y
FairyHighRoad No matter how many times I watch that episode, I always cry! 7y
Liatrek My favorite episode. I had to find the song they play at the end so I could listen to it and remember that scene 😭 7y
Ke633 I'm so glad I'm not the only one that finds this episode especially emotional. 😂 7y
Ke633 @Liatrek I love that song! 7y
13 likes5 comments
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WondrouslyMad
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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GingerSnap8314
Van Gogh: The Life | Steven Naifeh, Gregory White Smith
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I am so excited to finally get to read this book! I've been waiting for over a month for my library to get it in. 😬😄🎉😍

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Gina
Van Gogh: The Life | Gregory White Smith, Steven W. Naifeh
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"He expressed his truth in letters, and on canvas, immortalized by a complex and beautiful soul"

RealBooks4ever I don't think I've ever seen a picture of him before...🤔 7y
Gina @RealBooks4ever Yeah I have been a fan girl of Van Gogh since art college and I have rarely seen real pictures of him. So when I stumbled on this one I thought it would be fun to post. 7y
SaraFair He looks so much more normal than in his self portrait! 7y
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Gina @SaraFair his many self portraits are much more accurate to the inner turmoil he suffered throughout his entire life. One of his paintings starry night is of a view from his window at one of the insane asylums his family put him in. He was a very tortured soul. And not very likeable. 7y
SaraFair I 'm sold and stacked it. I love biographies, sometimes more weird than fiction. 7y
Gina @SaraFair be for warned it is 890 pages of tiny type. I must say though the writers really did their homework on this one and they are an enjoyable read. 7y
5 likes1 stack add6 comments
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Gina
Van Gogh: The Life | Gregory White Smith, Steven W. Naifeh
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I really like this book but it is such a tome it spends more time on my shelf than in my hands. I make it unfulfilled promises that I will finish it.

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BooksForYears
Van Gogh: The Life | Gregory White Smith, Steven W. Naifeh
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#SeasonsReadings2016 Day 8 - Art-Related Books (Part 1 - NonFiction)

If you're interested in a deep dive into the life and works of painter Vincent Van Gogh, this massive biography is your jam!

And thanks to my cat's foot for the photobomb!

#artrelatedbooks #vangogh #nonfiction #biography

Marchpane Nice choice of photo props! 🌷🌷🌷 7y
BooksForYears @Marchpane Thanks! I love my klompen! 🌷 7y
BethFishReads My wooden shoes are almost exactly like yours. But mine are a little beat up 7y
I-read-and-eat Oh dear...klompen 🙈 Most uncomfortable shoes ever 😂 7y
Serotonin My professor once told his class, "If you ain't Dutch, then you ain't much!" Love that man ? hahaha! 7y
142 likes2 stack adds5 comments
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Owlizabeth
Van Gogh: The Life | Gregory White Smith, Steven W. Naifeh
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I picked this gem up at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts on my annual birthday visit a couple of years ago. Van Gogh is my favorite painter. I haven't read it yet, because it's 900 dense pages, but I will one day! (Said every book hoarder ever) #artrelatedbooks #seasonsreadings2016

LitHousewife It's a gorgeous cover to have waiting on your shelf. 🙂 7y
britt_brooke Love him. 💙 7y
Annl Don't know if you have watched Dr. Who, "Vincent and the Doctor", but it is wonderful! Worth the watch even if you are not a Dr. Who fan. Have a tissue handy! 7y
Owlizabeth @Annl oh that's my favorite! It helps me on dark days. 7y
69 likes4 comments
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KimHM
Van Gogh: The Life | Gregory White Smith, Steven W. Naifeh
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My TBR shelf is out of control. This doesn't count the books I'm in the middle of reading 😁. Maybe we should form a pact @Blair_Reads ! #tbrtuesday

Blair_Reads Yes!! Because by myself it's so easy to start something else and never get back to the book!! 8y
MrBook I'm impressed! 8y
KimHM I think it's more addiction than achievement, @MrBook ! 8y
MrBook Okay then....I'm impressed by your addiction. 😂😂😂. 😎👍🏻👏🏻 8y
6 likes4 comments