Van Gogh: Techniques and Methods

Lydia Vagts, Cunningham Associate Conservator of Paintings
Delve into Van Gogh’s working style, techniques, and tools to gain a perspective into the artist’s studio.
October 13, 2015

[@leighfoulkes7297]

This was so fantastic. Nice to see someone take Van Gogh work so seriously instead of just talking about his sad life.

[@armyforlife3191]

Van Gogh is my favorite artist He was able to express his emotions and thoughts through a brush or pen. That and more is why he has a special place in my heart and Vante’s

[@Dee.yankeeintexas]

The episode of Vincent and the Doctor on the BBC Series Doctor Who is why I’m obsessed with Van Gogh. I consider myself lucky to have been able to attend the immersive event here in Houston. I would go see it again.

[@peipeiinHK]

The sad thing is that we never get to meet and talk to these masters ! Love this!

[@garynoble4320]

you never know who will be the next master.... maybe there is one living next door. Get involved with the local artists' scene

[@ytdavidkwei]

Master often "becomes" after this life and their time. They see things before we can see. You never know, maybe you are talking with master "now" but won't know until future. 😅

[@carienw]

Im his cousin. Thank you.

[@nickfanzo]

There are masters alive right now, go meet them

[@monaminas]

In their masterpieces is everything you could find out in a conversation. Mostly about the things they could not speak out freely, without being judged or rejected. Their work is the mirror of their souls.

[@heidiankers108]

Thank you, he is a hero for so many of us!

[@stilzslo]

Van Gogh was a Beast it’s amazing how much talent he had

[@tiadiad]

Thank you for this. I will never get tired of learning about Vincent. His life and letters to Theo are a work of art in themselves.

[@aishar887]

I'm a Fine Arts student here in Spain and it's wonderful that you provide such detailed and rich videos like this. I loved this one and I may continue watching more to help me understand more diverse procedures to paint. Thank you very much.

[@KpxUrz5745]

Incredibly interesting. Having studied this artist for decades, I remain utterly amazed at his monumental prolific output, and each piece with such intense originality. By force of his will he became almost incomprehensibly skilled. It can be hard to believe, but there are some people who deny Vincent's true abilities. What I would say to them is that they should pick up a tool to draw or paint, and give it a try. They will quickly see how difficult it is. His vision is inimitable.

[@octopuscaveman9291]

It's amazing that stuff like this is free to watch on the internet

[@ronaldzincone7764]

An excellent presentation on Van Gogh's techniques and methods.

[@yvonnefarrell1029]

I'll never look at a plain old dishtowel the same way again. What a great lecture; thanks!

[@greatquotesdaily4253]

I could listen to ideas on Vincent Van Gogh all day long!

[@v3le]

I could listen to his biography for whole my life!

[@IkegamiLisa]

I can't get over how informative this is. I was searching the internet for Van Gogh's process, and this presentation answered that question and SO MANY MORE that I had as well. Especially loved the box of yarn- now I can see all of his paintings as studies in balls of yarn! I was thrilled to see the information about his palette to his brother Theo .

[@geico1975]

@Ellie5621 HA! I only laugh because I can barely draw stick men much less paint a picture. I thoroughly enjoy taking in what others have created, and it's amazing people can create such meaning and beauty through painting/drawing art. Like everyone else, I'm sure, I'll look at something and think to myself, I'd love to do that! I get these ideas about a painting in my mind, but then I think no way I could do that. Then, I'll watch videos like this one and read comments of folks discussing a specific technique about drawing and painting, then I'll think. Even if I could potentially create the picture in my head, I'm reminded, oh! Wait. There's an entire other extensive study of art. How to actually do it:) HA!

[@killawhatt8620]

I studied one of his painting of a night sky, OMG. It blew my mind, his brush strokes we horizontal and vertical and very close together, but with just enough tiny space in between that it created a look of stars in’s the night sky!i. dk know what the paintings title was. I was impressed. Genius !

[@the1stime]

Vincent Faun Haugh The “haugh” pronunciation is like clearing your throat and rolling an R at the same time. The first H has a slight G in it, like Hgaugh. Not easy for Americans like me but for those that love Vincent intensely, it’s more than worth the effort.

[@Iamkayaky]

Very thorough and analytical: much appreciated.

[@shirleystenberg7418]

I am so grateful for these videos. I really makes my membership to the MFA more of a treasure.

[@Theodora_Chandrinou]

Congratulations for this presentation!! My pupils love Vincent Van Gogh!! Best wishes from Greece, Theodora Chandrinou, Artist and Art Teacher 🌻

[@pietlebrun5943]

Thank you so much for realising these videos for public worldwide!

[@4TUNECHINGSAN]

The best video and explanation about the painting process in XIX century, congrats!!!

[@ivanabusic2454]

What a life. It's next to crazy the dedication, creativity and energy which took to paint so much in such and short time. Genius.

[@bio-plasmictoad5311]

Just imagine if he never died, would of been interesting to see what his style had become in later life. But some things are not meant to be.

[@nickfanzo]

He had drive. More people need it these days instead of being distracted

[@777-Phil]

Extreme thanks for your thoughtful, empathetic, perceptive, and techniques-centered exposition. This is very satisfying to my extreme curiosity of artists' excellencies per se. Utmost blessings!

[@Myst165]

The part where she says how he used wool just blew my mind!

[@IngyMagdy-GyDesign0.0]

loved your passion for what you do and how you are interested in what you are saying... you kept me interested in each single word you've said..

[@RedSoxKal]

Thanks MFA. This video is a gem. I would love to see the same about Rembrandt's materials and practices as well as Da Vinci.

[@kamsiahkhatib3978]

Talented people must discover who he is otherwise at the end of the road he will start questioning ??? The Creater...so close!!!!

[@ricochetsixtyten]

Van Goghs paintings are alive

[@johncastle8254]

I love the late Van Gogh and studied his technique I made stretchers of the same size and used similar size brushes ,looked closely at his under painting and compositions ,you start to realize that he had many contrasts in surface and drawing line ,it's always horrible to see the clumsy way people paint usually with one brush backwards and forwards with no thought ,every part of Van Gogh paintings is drawn ,but they are all very different ,for instant the ( road Menders ) the trees have thick solid lines whereas the workers are sketched in thin red lines and are white whereas a lady passing is solid black ,the foreground of rubble is greys and blues at the bottom in contrast with the yellow at the top of the leaves .To paint this fast in oils you need a lot of clean brushes , one mark , you discard your brush ,take up clean brush make mark discard and so on ,this way you have to decide on every stroke ,when you run out of brushes ,you stop clean them all and begin again .The undulating form of the ground and the sky and the landscape was captured in Vincent's brushwork so beautiful ,field with stacks of wheat is one of my favs .exaggerate the essential and leave the rest vague ,great quote of his .

[@rm104]

Let's see your work, master.

[@jianhe630]

An inspirational comment. Thank you!

[@sabbottart]

Any style of painting in any medium requires lots of clean brushes.

[@mona2242]

John Castle thanks for your input.

[@harishreddy4034]

Could you elaborate on your knowledge of the type of brushes he used? If you look at his Irises, he seems to manage broad strokes with fine line control, and I've always wondered about what type of brushes he may have used. Thanks.

[@NickVenture1]

Thank you for the interesting presentation.The Art historian mentioned the new technology capable of analyzing much better the weaving of canvasses and helpful to identify the chronology of their creation in relation to other paintings done on a same batch of canvas. This is called "Thread Count" and the expertise is also called "TCR" which stands for "Thread Count Report". This technique which is now a very important part of art expertise not only for canvasses attributed to Van Gogh but also to more ancient masters, was pioneered by Proffessor Johnson from the USA who has a lot of merit for having contributed with his mathematic algorythms to the initially unrelated field of art expertise. I like to mention this here including his name because in the presentation were just mentionned "scientists". Professor Johnson continues to build up a very rich database of thousands of canvas "TCR" which indeed constitute a kind of growing genealogy of the several masters oeuvres he is now involved in.

[@bernarddoran7530]

I. Okay wYayy. Y

[@bernarddoran7530]

I. Okay weYayy. Y

[@richardbond258]

These negative comments are just petty. This was a great lecture. I enjoy the different perspective. Thank you for sharing.

[@jenniechen24]

Thank you for sharing! So valuable video! I really enjoy watching and learn a lot!

[@judithbetts453]

Thank you for this most informative talk!

[@Ravenzpeak]

I really love this...what a great way to describe the evolution of his work. Adds so much more to our understanding and appreciation of this wonderful artist..Thumbs up Lydia - thanks for this video!

[@nealart]

Thank you for posting this.

[@jankocelebic5124]

Tremendous work.I can't draw a stickman.I try to do what he did with photographs.I mean I can try at least.But seeing his paintings makes photography look like a kids play.No camera can capture textures and colors in such a beautiful way.

[@worbjorb]

this helped me a lot with an art assessment thank you for uploading this!!!

[@lisengel2498]

Great to listen to your lecture and truly inspiring to go deep into his technique because his painting style is very sensuous, very unique and you can somehow feel the movements of the colors as a strong vibration of your whole bodymind. But I also think that Van Gogh’s paintings in a very strong manner show what artistic quality is: that the painting effects you in a very direct way in the present. The history and all the technical details are interesting but it is the painting that tell a story that can move us again and again. I do love to watch his paintings and truly appreciate this modern way of experiencing them even if it is only on a screen -

[@masoodakhtar1937]

very informative and helpful for me as well as for my students. Thanks for sharing.

[@molly9929]

Even they aren't realistic, they seem so real, it's surreal.

[@user-qp3my6rh7k]

יכיחלהלחצךךךללףךפעממצתלחייחלתתצמצך

[@cornegeyer2681]

@@user-qp3my6rh7k what is this alien text i just discovered

[@dj9543]

@@cornegeyer2681 Hebrew

[@pamelajordan5948]

No showed the pain of people working in fields trying to feed there hungry families what no oh God

[@nickfanzo]

You can capture the soul and vail of existence without illustrating realistically. And we have cameras now that can do that.

[@TheElegantZoe]

Very interesting. Thank you

[@frankblangeard8865]

Vincent took himself and his paintings so seriously.

[@Johnconno]

@Sub D France You reckon eh?

[@warriorson7979]

He was consumed by mental illness.

[@artisntdead8422]

That’s what mental illness does

[@nickfanzo]

@@warriorson7979 not all driven and passionate artists are mentally ill. And Van Gogh may have also been on the spectrum.

[@user-yb8vr2ip2t]

Yes, and Van Gogh didn't even use glitter, macaroni or hot glue guns. Just imagine...

[@travisneighborward2205]

Fantastic discussion and examples. Thank you.

[@sarahmiller6183]

This has been fantastic. I loved the presentation. Thank you!

[@nwhittingham]

splendid talk, thanks

[@jackhillard7831]

Amazing X-ray images. Sends goosebumps through me. I’m also impressed with primary color usage.

[@MiiPaintings]

Amaaazing video. Thank you for this. It helped me so much. Greetings from artist from the Czech republic

[@greatquotesdaily4253]

Great talk. Amazing information!

[@richardho9025]

i must learn from all master that I like most.

[@lawrencealtaffer1813]

An excellent lecture. Merci

[@GNeis7345]

Thank you for sharing this video, i decided to go and learn Art Appreciation, ! and so far Vincent Van Gogh is the one so far who touch my soul.

[@xxxCYCOxxx]

very interesting thanks amazing information

[@caroltownsend2722]

Completely enjoyed your vidio --- It was very Informent---

[@jehovahuponyou]

I HAVE A 3 SECOND ATTENTION SPAN (LOL!!!), *BBBUUUTTT* , I WATCHED THIS WHOLE VIDEO AND WAS NEVER ONCE BORED INTO A COMA - THE REASON FOR THIS IS THAT *THIS WAS A VERY WELL-DONE VIDEO* , ALSO I LOVE VINCENT - BRAVO TO THE MAKER(S) OF THIS VIDEO, AND BRAVO TO MY DEAR FRIEND, Mr. VINCENT VAN GOGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@FFrankie2]

Its great, thank you!

[@luzrodas519]

Very interesting! Thank you!

[@mousumimunsi4651]

just amazing like amazon

[@nimitz1739]

This is awesome. Also the first question is exactly what I was wondering as well. 1:13:06 nice lesson!

[@fbpliegorrivero8869]

Excellent, congratulations 🎊

[@cl03cl]

Amazing

[@r1mdmvh]

Precious content

[@vedros6822]

If Vincent was watching this lecture he would learn a lot about himself and painting

[@Zincink]

Thanks for sharing.

[@cathylarkins9949]

Vincent has always been one of my favorites

[@cngreen2950]

Thank you very much!

[@nuraybayhan4089]

Thanks a lot for this an excelent presentation.

[@auroramoreno2642]

Perfect !!!!

[@feconway5180]

Thank you Museum of Fine Arts

[@AReneeDesign23]

Excellent information and SO much of it! It is all good but kinda long for me...:)

[@banzy3]

18:07 Nice save, almost said his surname there! :) Very interesting video, thank you.

[@feconway5180]

2015-18, speakers were mispronouncing Gogh as “Go”. A 2021 documentary distinguished the pronunciation as “GOF” (difficult in Dutch) & cited Gogh’s letters signed “van gof” for those reasons. Yes artsy detail. Loved it too

[@sofiaaraya8401]

Video gave detailed and in depth information. Although wording was advanced, it is unlike any other.

[@feconway5180]

If u like to fast fwd 10, 20, 120 seconds, double, triple click on right side of screen on an 🍎📲11. I loved that the Art were titled. To review I used Rewind feature also. Double, triple click @Left side, if u wish to.

[@DutchCreekRanch1]

Nice presentation

[@mojophe1617]

Vincent was a fan of illustrators and collected illustrations which inspired some of his works.

[@AB.926]

Please do Monet that would be lovely

[@MSTJRI]

Dear Lydia Vagts, Thank you for this wondefull presenation,there is somthing that always intrigues me about great painters.Did Vincent Van Gogh paint, reproduce and sign works of other great apinters in order to sell them for subsistance(during difficult times) while waiting for his brother money to come.Thank you dear Lydia

[@robcoghan5204]

Brilliant

[@JamesCrandallPainting]

Academics feel the need to attribute INTENTION to every aspect of an artist’s work… even when there probably is none. (Sometimes unpainted canvas is just a bug, not a feature)

[@Gringle_]

He used the bare canvas like that all the time bro...he definitely did it intentionally

[@the1stime]

True. In his letters to Theo he talks about his desire to draw and paint fast. He finished a few paintings in as little as an hour. Towards the end of his life he would finish 2-3 paintings a day. He also talked about capturing the essentials and leaving the rest vague. Allowing the under painting to show through isn’t always intentional, it just happens when the goal is quick expression.

[@williamschlenger1518]

As an artist myself I can understand the probably.I hate ordering on line.Most local art stores are shut down due to the pandemic.

[@clydejohn5642]

Thank You for the Video. I myself believe that he never through away paint. When he had unfinish pieces. Say he had left over Blue or Brown. He would use the excess paint quickly addind the left over oaint to the pieces accordingly. I have painted many of his Master Pieces. I find that the Process is a slow processs. By adding pigment to them I smaller amounts of paint. Quickly or Rapidly but always with Authority. I have heard that he sometimes did Two to Three. I struggle to complete just one a day. But adding color here and there allows me to end up with Several or More a Month. I caught betreen Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Oscar Monet.

[@bethbabson913]

@The Magnificent Whalens stop harassing people.

[@traiguen1000]

Thank you for sharing!!!

[@eveny119]

The surface of the 2 pieces to be restored (1:11:12 ) may not look as natural as Van Gogh had wanted, but it appears to me that the top layer is there to protect the color and keeps the pigment in place. These 2 at the end of the talk seem lovely and vibrant on my monitor. Unless it has discolored or in some way damaged the piece I would rather it be left alone. Anyone else agree/disagree?

[@Herr2Cents]

I wondered why it was so glossy.

[@DJSTOEK]

🖤

[@EndOfEntertainment]

Cool stuff :)

[@Divertedflight]

I'm surprised that the Ultramarine blue was more expensive than cobalt blue in Van Gogh's time. Now that's dramatically reversed. Ultramarine blue is now among the cheapest of oil colours to buy, with the cobalts being the most costly. I've used original Geranium lake from an old tube dating from the 1960's. It starts off a beautiful deep fuschia rose but in mere months quickly fades in light to a light reddish orange. It seems to spend more of it's life this second colour before; if placed in direct sunlight; disappearing completely within a year. I've often wondered how much Van Gogh planned for its secondary appearance.

[@Sophie-uc8vp]

I have oils from the 1960's I inherited from my godfather, I'm almost reluctant to use them due to sentiment but your observation has intrigued me; I shall test them with great interest!

[@Herr2Cents]

@@Sophie-uc8vp how did it go?

[@sabrinanascimento5248]

I love this Artist. Yes, he did cut off his ear.😂 I like his style. I did a Re-enactment of his Sunflowers 🌻. I did a portrait of Vincent but it didn’t turn out well, I painted him fat. I don’t know what happened 😂. I use Acrylic paint, it’s different than oil. No wonder he turned out fat. .

[@contessathecat6237]

Sabrina Nascimento lol

[@guldenaydin9918]

❤

[@binke5458]

The first time I saw Van Gogh's works, I was deeply attracted by the kind of vitality of art, until later I read the biography of Van Gogh three times.

[@erinpanjer6768]

For the first question, how did Vangogh avoid muddy colours when working quickly outside. Possibly just the heat of the day, I find that on nice summer days the paint dries surprisingly quickly and it's optimal to work on sunny bright warm days, the palette dries up very quickly!

[@sorryrocco]

Its not the canvas that shrinks and expands, its the timber strecher frames.

[@Drrameshyoutube]

Sure

[@orhanuralortac2566]

👍🙏

[@umranozluk7747]

How can I listen it as a Turkish

[@yelassinacoulibaly819]

🌈❤️❤️❤️🍀🌻🌹🙏👣🌈

[@pacopakito4576]

VAN GOKHH

[@narendra672]

🎄

[@danielgaravito1172]

Por favor traduscalo en español gracias me intereza mucho o que sutitulado en español doblemente gracias la cultura se tiene que divrrsicar entre mas se conozca mejor para todos

[@anthonyfowler8634]

Very insightful thoughts on his works. As for his personality and the effects on his art can be explained by his childhood temporal lobe epilepsy. We can look to history and others who had this malady such as Joan of Arc or another artist Antoine Watteau. The desire to be creative and fulfill a desire that came along with voices. This epilepsy has been around forever producing very creative individuals some of whom had super human abilities and all being very psychic. How do I know this? I as well had this epilepsy as a child and the Van Gogh Museum has known of me for a long time. Ask yourself why this would be.

[@nickdryad]

Do any ordinary art lovers talk about Mauve, Teersteeg or Rapport. they were his critics, his competitors and detractors. Van Gogh defied them to essentially create expressionism. Yes, he had serious personality issues probably borderline personality disorder. But his legacy is of inestimable value.

[@Divertedflight]

To say Van Gogh I don't think it's necessary to use the sounds that are not part of standard English. Personally I think it sounds a bit affected, and we are perfectly used to using Anglo versions of thousands of other words and names. So how to say it with what we do use in English? "Van" is not said like the motor vehicle. It's closer to the German "Von" but softer; so the V is more like a short F. "Fon". On to the Gogh. Now you know that Austrian squarish hand gun popular in the United States and their crime shows? The Gloch. Try saying this, then remove the "L" "Goch". And there you have it _____"Fon Goch"_______ it looks strange in print, but it works.

[@shuttlefeather]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZbSaHhnh5xrr9E Vincent van Gogh pronunciation

[@Trixtah]

Most of us anglophones say "van goff" - it's far from ideal, and as you say, you can get a better approximation without having to use the Dutch -gh sound - but I really have no idea why Americans say "van go", it's completely bizarre.

[@lisengel2498]

🙏very interesting but please avoid showing the lecturer all the time in the lower right corner. Show in stead the largest possible image of the power points so that it become a direct view on the image 🌷❤️🌺

[@elektrozil9728]

First question; Who's Van Gogh?

[@johnryskamp7755]

For Vincent, no line is permitted which does not construct.