Christopher Barrett
Why Van Gogh?
I grew up in a very modest home. One thing my mother did her
best to do however was to decorate the home as best she could, giving it the
face of a more affluent home. One such way she did so was using prints of art
work by famous artists and models of their work. One of her personal favorites
it appears was Vincent Van Gogh. His work was abundant in our home and I grew
up looking at his work such as “The Starry Night” and “A Pair of Shoes”. His
very smooth appearing yet almost textile in texture patterns were so unique and
satisfying to my eyes, I can always identify his work among piles of others. I
find his personal story also resonates with that of my generation. Mimicking
those he preserved as experts, his work appeared stale and dead, until he one
day established his own style which alienated all the other masters of his time
and finding his place in the art world. Looking back at how I grew up finding
piece in his art and self-reflecting at where I am now, I feel that his
exploration of self-establishment is something we all must do, so as to become
a true expert in whatever field we choose to go into.
De Roza Perzikboom
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Informative sites:
The site is very interactive and has some animated elements
keeping the researcher engaged in their informational pursuit. Over to the left
is a very helpful and clearly laid out site navigator. Broken into four broad categories
of The Work, The Man, The Legend, The Goods and The Community, they are then
broken into related links within the site. The information is very sound and
holistic. Describes on the site are multiple pieces of his and their styles as
well as a brief biography on Vincent Van Gogh.
This site has clutter caused by ads and other internet
sites, but the integrity of the subject, Van Gogh, is still intact. Here, the
site provides auto playing biographies narrated for the viewer that play as you
read through his works and the impression they had on artists of his time. The
site explores important dates and events in his life; the reader also gets a
sense of his character and who Vincent Van Gogh really is. The site however
replays the narrated biographies as you continue to the next pages of
information.
One of the reasons I chose this site, as it still provides a
concise summary of Van Gogh, it provides an opportunity to learn more of his
work outside of just a typical site. Rather, to explore a museum and see how
Vincent Van Gogh’s pieces continue to shape contemporary artists works. This
site, along with the other two, was also selected for its level of interaction
with the reader. Information is, again, clear and straightforward.