The Life and Art of Vincent van Gogh

Tuesday, November 5, 2024
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Pathstone Latitude, 115 Rogers Street, Mankato

11 sessions total (no meeting on December 24); You are welcome to join even if you cannot attend all sessions.

Vincent van Gogh is one of the most widely recognized, and one of the most widely misunderstood, artists of the modern world. What was the secret of his amazing output — over 800 paintings in less than a decade? How did he arrive at such a deeply individual and expressive style of art? Did he really commit suicide? The centerpiece of this course will be 15 lectures (each 20-30 min long) from the Great Courses In the Footsteps of Vincent van Gogh.

The course has 114 reviews, 110 of which are 5-star. Lecture titles will be supplemented by material from YouTube including: a 3-part BBC documentary, virtual museum tours; analyses of individual paintings; and explorations of van Gogh’s mental illness. At the end of the course we will watch a remarkable and visually stunning 2017 Oscar-nominated feature film, Loving Vincent, which examines the circumstances of his 1890 death.

• Presenter: Retiree Psychologist Steve Gilbert minored in art history as an undergrad; his senior thesis was a psychological study of Van Gogh. Steve has long been interested in Vincent’s life, personality and art. In preparation for facilitating this course he is reading the most recent biography of van Gogh, 2011’s 976-page Van Gogh: The Life by Steven Naifeh & Gregory White Smith.
• Registration Fee: Free for Gold Members, $20 for entire course for Silver Members.
• Sponsor: Steve Gilbert