The “Real” face of Van Gogh?
Re-creation of Van Gogh from his 1887 portrait, when he was 34 years old.
The only existing photo portrait of van Gogh, taken as a young man.
Vincent Van Gogh is known as the quintessential “tortured artist”. His life was spent as something of a pilgrim - van Gogh was constantly on a quest to find himself, moving over 30 times in his life, never truly settling.
Vincent’s melancholy began at boarding school, where his loneliness seemed to consume him. It was the beginning of a sadness that would never truly leave him, and was flared by toxic friendship and short-lived romances.
Vincent didn’t even begin drawing and painting until his late 20s, but during the remaining 10 years of his life he produced over 900 works of art. Van Gogh was committed to showing the beauty in the world, even if he didn’t feel it internally. His beautiful use of color, light, and unique brushstrokes puts him squarely in the list of “Greatest Artists of All Time.”
So, what did Van Gogh look like in real life? It’s harder to pin down than you might think.
According to the Van Gogh museum, Van Gogh painted self-portraits, not particularly for self-expression or studying his own appearance. He painted them simply because he wanted to paint the human form - and models were expensive. There are 35 self-portraits of Vincent, and only 1 photo portrait of him.
Notice how van Gogh looks different in each painting? Luckily, the common threads are there: Defined brow and cheekbones, slightly hooked nose, red hair & beard. Images courtesy of the Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam - public domain of the United States.
Each self-portrait is an interesting window into his mental condition. We see many versions of Vincent, each looking quite different. In some, his facial angles are extremely exaggerated and shadowed in dark colors - possible insight into his distressed mental state. However, his general facial features are there each time - red hair, defined cheekbones, a slightly hooked nose - the details change with each version.
I used his self portrait from 1887 for my re-creation. After looking through them all, this one somehow seems to fall perfectly in the middle. It’s also comparable to his photo portrait as a young man, looking like a thin, aged up version of it. I’ve also created a modern Van Gogh, just for fun.