VAN GOGH art and madness?

VAN GOGH art and madness

“No true artist –says Gregorio Luke- is ‘normal’ and it’s difficult for somebody who has never lived with an artist to understand their intensity. I have always taken issue with the sensationalist attempt to explain Van Gogh’s genius as a product of mental illness. The onset of madness is marked by a dramatic alteration of behavior and in Van Gogh’s case, what we find is remarkable consistency. There is congruency in every one of his acts; from his selflessness as a missionary in the Borinage and his desire to live like the peasants he painted, to his taking in and protecting a pregnant prostitute. His paintings are the visual equivalent to his life. It was this uncompromising honesty that bothered people because it held a mirror to society’s hypocrisy and selfishness.”