Sunday (Oct 16) there was an extraordinary segment on 60 Minutes about Vincent Van Gogh. Ever since college, Vincent has been one of my favorites. I think because his story was so painful and heart wrenching, He’s just unforgettable. I actually saw an exhibit of his work at the L.A. County Museum when it was own tour from his Amsterdam Museum. People were lined up for blocks to see the exhibit!
(I stood in line for two hours and I had bought my tickets months prior. )
Anyway, two writers are doing in-depth research for a book about Van Gogh and guess what?
THE OLD TALE OF VINCENT VAN GOGH GOING OUT IN THE WHEAT FIELD AND SHOOTING HIMSELF ISN’T TRUE. The trajectory of bullet in his lower abdomen would have made it virtually impossible for him to have shot himself. And he was shot at a distance. All of this was documented by the police and later the autopsy.
What these writers discovered is there were 3 mischievous teenage boys in the town who took delight in constantly teasing Vincent when he was out painting. One of these boys admitted
(decades later) that he
(the boy) had taken the gun from his own home. It was a gun that belonged to his father and not Vincent's -as the story goes. The conjecture is that the gun probably went off accidentally in the process of their antics. The terrified the boys ran off and left Vincent.
(As to the exact details of the shooting, all 3 boys took the facts to their own graves.)
ALSO- Vincent was NOT found in the wheat fields as the story goes. He was shot in a farmyard only a half mile from the restaurant
(where he lived) and staggered back down the street under his own power. (
Local residents reported they heard a gun shot) He survived for 30 hours post the shooting. His brother Theo was by his side when he died.
And here‘s another shocker- the ominous LAST painting,“Wheatfields with Crows’, which has been described by art historians as a clear indication of Vincent's thoughts of suicide and depression-
wasn’t Vincent’s last painting. It was done 2 weeks before he died and he painted several more ‘happy and colorful’ paintings in the following weeks.
The tale of Vincent’s dramatic suicide was completely fabricated by Adeline Ravoux. Her father owned the restaurant where Vincent rented the upstairs flat
(his famous little room) above the business. She either admitted, and/or it was discovered, years later she made up the story.
You know, I found myself feeling a little angry. We’ve always been lead to believe that Vincent was a crazed out-of-control artist. He's been depicted repeatedly in movies and books as a genius lunatic who in a manic moment went out in the 'very wheat field he painted' and ended his misery.
The relative contradiction and most telling account: Vincent knew he was dieing, when the police asked if he did this to himself. Vincent said,
“I 'believe' so. Don't accuse anybody else."
He didn't say-'Yes, I did' or 'Yes- I want to die' or anything a suicidal maniac would say. Point of fact- in what had to be tremendous pain from the gun shot, he walked half a mile attempting to get help. And in this process he adds 'don't accuse anybody else'? Interesting, huh?
Vincent Van Gogh's last dieing act was to protect 3 foolish youngsters that were just starting their own lives and had done something very very stupid.
As always, Mr. Van Gogh ..you pull at our heart strings like no other artist before or after you.
Vikki
To see the CBS video segment:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/10/16/60minutes/main20120760_page5.shtml
All images and stories in this blog are ©2011VikkiNorth. All stories are works of fiction and not based on real people or situation. Unauthorized use or duplication -in any form-is restricted by Law and will result in litigation.
