Vincent, Part Three

Still working my way through his letters to his brother Theo, which are published in their entirety here: http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/ This post begins in January of 1879.

For the early part of the year he is working as an evangelist in the Borinage, a coal mining are in (I think) Belgium.  His descriptions of the mines & miners & the world they inhabit are masterful.  His artists eye combines with a ready sympathy that manages not to be cloying or pitying at all.  He respects the miners even while he is a bit appalled at their condition.

His depression (or whatever his mental condition is) Is likely made worse by what he sees while working as an evangelist in this area. He cannot help but imagine, empathize, and despair (this is purely my interpretation, btw) - When I saw you again and walked with you, I had a feeling I used to have more often than I do now, namely that life is something good and precious which one should value, and I felt more cheerful and alive than I have been feeling for a long time, because in spite of myself my life has gradually become less precious, much less important and more a matter of indifference to me, or so it seemed. - Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh, Cuesmes, mid August 1879

Same letter...I like that he acknowledges how he is feeling, but is choosing to try and make it better - So instead of giving in to despair I chose active melancholy, in so far as I was capable of activity, in other words I chose the kind of melancholy that hopes, that strives and that seeks, in preference to the melancholy that despairs numbly and in distress.


So, I read along,1879 and much of 1880 pass pretty quickly because there is some sort of estrangement between him and the rest of his family. He doesn't write at all from August of 1879 to July of 1880. The July letter contains in large part his attempts to explain his non-conformity and seeming inability to be the person his family wants him to be. This letter sears, cuts, in its honesty. I don't even know where to begin to paste sections. If you like, you can pause here and follow this link to read the entire thing: http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/8/133.htm Go ahead, I won't stop you. Read the entire thing and absorb it. It's worth your time. I'll still be here when you come back.

At this point, I have made it through to January of 1881. Good changes are happening (or at least changes that he seems positive about). He has left the coal country and found a drawing school in Brussels. With his characteristic fervor, he is throwing himself into drawing the way that he threw himself into his studies for the ministry. 1881 looks to be chock full of letters, so that must mean that he feels better during this year (at least I hope so). Another entry will follow in a day or so. Meanwhile, I think I am going to commit large parts of the letter of July 1880 to memory.