This painting of shoes is by Vincent van Gogh. He was a dutch post-impressionist painter who is now regarded as one of the most famous and most influential of this movement although this did not occur until after his death at 37 years old. His most famous works of art came from the last three years of his life which he spent in Arles, France. Over this time he produced over 860 works of art. While he lived in Arles he occupied a small yellow cottage next by an Inn which he frequented normally. Here is where he made most of these pieces.
Although Van Gogh made many stills of shoes over his carry this one is one of the most recognizable. It is thought that these shoes represented Van Gogh’s psychological state which was deteriorating at the time. He was in and out of mental institutions at the time. A fellow artist stated that Vincent had bought them at a flea market for the purpose of using them as a still but thought they were in too good condition so he proceeded to wear them out until they looked very broken in which was the look he desired for the still.
I encountered this art work while strolling though the MET. I was making my way through the impressionism section. I passed paintings by Monet, Renoir, Matisse, and Gauguin. I saw a few of Van Goghs portraits that were displayed but I ultimately decided to write about this one. I chose this one because one of my favorite films is At Eternity’s Gate which is about the last three years of Van Goghs life. This film particularly focuses on his mental collapse, his relationship with fellow painter Gauguin, and his struggles to breakthrough as an established and liked artist.
The aspects of this painting that push the narrative of modernism and it’s aesthetics and what draws me to it even more so are the details in and around the shoes. The untied shoelaces emphasis the feeling of a long day and exhaustion and the worn, broken down make of the shoe expresses this worn out battered person which may be a representation of Van Goghs being at the time. The red work out tile where the shoes sit on also adds to the painting. Not only are the shoes worn out which leads you to assume that the wearer (the artist) is the same but so are his surroundings and you can only imagine what that does to someone mentally. Someone who’s talent is constantly rejected and that their mind and their surroundings are on the decline.
This painting was done in 1888 which places it at the very beginning of the modernist period. What’s going on in the painting itself that helps us see where art is headed? How is Van Gogh’s technique itself breaking with traditional modes of representation here? The shoes are, after all, “life like”; nonetheless, if you look at the hatch marks to the right of the shoes and the visible brushwork and other signs of the artist, we see some of the most important features of modernist art.
P.S. You haven’t provided me with proof of your museum visit.