Gogh, Vincent (Willem) van

Dutch post-Impressionist painter. He began painting in the 1880s, his early works often being sombre depictions of peasant life, such as The Potato Eaters (1885; Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam). Influenced by the Impressionists and by Japanese prints, he developed a freer style characterized by intense colour and expressive brushwork, as seen in his Sunflowers series (1888). His influence on modern art, particularly on expressionism, has been immense.

His numerous works (over 800 paintings and 700 drawings) include still lifes, portraits (many self-portraits), and landscapes, such as The Starry Night (1889; Museum of Modern Art, New York) and Crows over Wheatfield (1890; Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam). His most creative time was 1888 in Arles, Provence, in the company of the painter Paul Gauguin, when he produced views of the town and such pictures as Orchard in Blossom and The Chair and Pipe.