About Van Gogh Journal - MET - Self-Portrait With a Straw (1887)
This Van Gogh Journal has 144 ruled pages and a hardcover inspired by Van Gogh's most famous self-portrait: Self-Portrait With a Straw (1887). During his stay in Paris Van Gogh produced more than twenty self-portraits between 1886 and 1888. Short of funds but determined nevertheless to hone his skills as a figure painter, he became his own best sitter.  This picture, which shows the artist’s awareness of Neo-Impressionist technique and color theory, is one of several that are painted on the reverse of an earlier peasant study.
Van Gogh was a master painter who strongly influenced the abstract and Neo-expressionist who came after him. Originating from the Netherlands, he discovered Impressionist art while living in Paris and started to use the color and light. His work is well known for its beauty, emotion, and color, as well as its interesting viewpoints of mundane objects.
Despite being extremely poor and generally unknown throughout his lifetime, Van Gogh is now one of the greatest Dutch painters. He lived a life with emotional tension and madness, and he created his finest piece, Starry Night, inside an institution.
Although the specter of mental illness haunted him throughout his adult life and created a habit of inflicting self-harm (such as the infamous severed ear), his work remained a testament to his genius. Van Gogh died at the age of only 37, due to a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His brother Theo would go on to distribute his work and cultivate his popularity.
