Colour expresses something in itself, one cannot do without this, one must use it.
Vincent's use of colour changed from dark tones in his early years of painting to brighter and vibrant colours. Black lines from the Japanese style paintings are also seen in his paintings. The black paint also separates him from the Impressionists as they never used black.
I use colour more arbitrarily so as express myself more forcibly.
Tools and Application:.
Vincent sometimes used a knife instead of brushes and applied the paint using the impasto technique (applying paint on thickly). Vincent painted en-plein-air. The lines and strokes visible in his paintings create a rhythmic and well balanced technique. Vincent relied on Theo to send him tools and supplies.
Sunflowers:.
Vincent began painting sunflowers in Paris firstly with other flowers then alone. He started to paint sunflowers in Arles to decorate the Yellow House' for his friend Paul Gauguin's arrival. One of van Gogh's most remarkable paintings is Four Sunflowers'.
The Café Terrace at night:.
In this painting, the gaslight fills the canopy of the café. Vincent gave a description of this painting in a letter he wrote to his sister Wilhelmien. He wrote here is a night picture without any black, nothing but beautiful blue and violet and green, and in those surroundings, the lighted square is coloured sulphur yellow and limey green.
The Starry Night:.
For The Starry Night, Vincent worked with wild energy. The swirling brushstrokes wrapped around the moon and the stars create brilliant rhythms of light. Vincent had moved beyond what was visible to create an amazing projection. He used the cypresses to create a link between the sky and the earth, and life and death. The tall steeples in the painting weren't part of the landscape of St-Remy but were actually from the landscape of some Dutch villages which shows that he felt homesick and longed for his homeland.
