1853
THE FIRST YEARS
1853 Vincent Van Gogh was born on March 30, 1853 in Groot-Zundert (Netherlands).
1857 Van Gogh’s brother, Theo, was born. The brothers will develop a life- long profound and unbreakable bond.
1861-1868 Van Gogh finds employment at the Hagues branch of the art dealer Goupil & Cie
1873 He is transferred to the London branch of Goupil & Cie. In London, Van Gogh experiences his first dramatic love affair.
1880
UNLUCKY IN LOVE
1880 Van Gogh moves to Bruxelles to study art, where he is helped financially by his brother Theo. He falls in love with his cousin, Kee Vos- Stricker (“KV” as Vincent called her). When his suit is adamantly refused, Van Gogh burns his hand with a candle.
1882 Van Gogh meets Sien, a pregnant prostitute whom he invites to live with him in his small studio, together with her daughter. After the birth of her child, Sien goes back to work. Van Gogh becomes jealous. He abruptly packs his painting gear up and leaves.
1884 He goes back to his parents’ house in Nuenen, where he has another ill-fated love affair with Margot, the neighbors’ daughter.
1885 Van Gogh paints “The Potato Eaters,” one of his most famous works of art.
1886
THE IMPRESSIONISTS
1886 Van Gogh is now living in Paris, where his brother Theo introduces him to impressionist painters like Camille Pissarro and Edgar Degas.
1888 Hoping to create a community of free artists, Van Gogh moves to Arles.
1888 – MAY Van Gogh moves in the Yellow House, where he gets ready for the arrival of Paul Gauguin. At first, both artists get along peacefully and are friendly to one another, working and spending their days together.
1888 – DECEMBER Van Gogh cuts his left ear on December 23rd after a heated discussion with Gauguin.
1890
THE LAST YEARS
1889 Theo organizes a hospital stay for his brother, but, in May, it is understood that Van Gogh needs a more specialized treatment in a psychiatric hospital. In May, Van Gogh voluntarily commits himself into an asylum in Saint-Rémy where he will paint one his most famous paintings, “The Starry Night.”
1890 Van Gogh leaves Saint-Rémy’s asylum and travels to Auvers-Sur-Ouse, a small village near Paris where he will be treated by Doctor Paul Gachet
1890 JULY On the 27th of July, Van Gogh shoots himself in the chest in the middle of a wheatfield. He staggers back to his lodgings where he will pass away, two days later.