Vincent van Gogh and Mental Health

• Art
• Middelbare school
• Basisschool
• vmbo, mavo, havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 1-6

Introduction

inspiratiesessie

Welcome to the Heart for Art Community!

This picture was taken by my father in 2021, when I was writing my master thesis about the Museum of the Mind in Haarlem, where I was doing an internship. My thesis was about the question whether the museum can serve as a place for caring, and a place for combating stigma and inequalities surrounding mental health. 

The Rijksmuseum gave De Botton a chance. He rearranged the paintings and try to give way for a more therapeutical way of looking at art. The reactions were very dismissive, as we can see from this picture, tweeted by someone who did not like it, apparantly. But also the response in de media was harsh. The renowned Dutch Newspaper De Volkskrant called it ''an insult three times over'' to art, museums and above all the visitor.

Volkskrant, 2014

Art as Therapy, 2016

certain art works provide powerful solutions to our problems, but that in order for this potential to be released, the audience’s attention has to be directed towards it in a new way, rather than towards the more normal historical or stylistic concerns with which art books and museum captions are traditionally associated. The authors propose that the squeamish belief that art should be ‘for art’s sake’ has unnecessarily held back art from revealing its latent therapeutic potential.

Some important literature has been written on the subject matter by Alain de Botton and John Armstrong, and also The school of life. 

November 2022

Discussion

Do you think it's important for museums to promote mental health awareness? 

How do you think art can be used as a tool for mental health?

Encourage students to think critically about the importance of mental health awareness and the role of art in promoting mental health.

Wellbeing with Vincent

Teaching about mental health with the Van Gogh Museum

Teaching about mental health with the Van Gogh Museum

Mental Narratives: 

Teaching about mental health with the Van Gogh Museum

Why do we do this?

We vinden mentale gezondheid heel erg belangrijk bij het Van Gogh Museum. De sociale betrokkenheid van musea is de afgelopen jaren een belangrijke factor geworden in de maatschappij. Door dit soort thema's aan te snijden proberen we een inclusiever en diverser museum te worden, waar zoveel mogelijk mensen zichzelf in herkennen. 

Healing power of art

Hope

Throughout his life, Vincent van Gogh felt the healing power of art. It offered him solace and hope. 

Remedy

To him, painting was the sole remedy for the mental issues with which he struggled. 

Letters

In his letters to his brother Theo, Vincent was open about his mental health; he wrote about his periods of crisis and recovery.

Research

Academic research also confirmes that art has a positive effect on health and general well-being. The two-year pandemic greatly impacted our mental well-being, and many young adults indicate that they experience stress and sombre feelings. Precisely in these times, art can help to prevent or alleviate psychological issues.

Discuss Van Gogh's struggles with mental health and how they affected his life and work.

Objectives of this session

At the end of this session you will be able to:

1. Explain who Vincent van Gogh was, with a focus on his mental health
2. Describe the specific efforts of the Van Gogh Museum in the field of mental health
3. Identify the available materials in the Van Gogh Museum's LessonUp regarding mental health.

Introduce the learning objectives to the students and explain what will be covered in the lesson.

What do you already know about Vincent van Gogh?

Van Gogh's mental health

‘I well knew that one could break one’s arms and legs before, and that then afterwards that could get better but I didn’t know that one could break one’s brain and that afterwards that got better too.’

Vincent to his brother Theo, 28 January 1889

Provide a brief overview of Vincent van Gogh's life and work to give students a better understanding of the artist they will be learning about.

Vincent

Vincent van Gogh had a troubled life. Things weren’t always easy. His mental health difficulties sometimes made him frightened, sad and unsure of himself. He was quite fragile, but he was also strong. He always tried to find the courage to carry on. Painting helped him get himself together again, and nature gave him comfort. 

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam houses most of Vincent van Goghs paintings and drawings, and almost all of his letters. Especially these letters shed light on Vincents ambitions as an artist, his joys ànd tragedies in art and life. Mental health is also part of his story. There were periods of ‘melancholy’ in his early life, he could be passionate about things and would work too hard, neglecting his health. This resulted in Arles, in The Yellow House in a mental breakdown – when he cut of his ear – and his voluntary admittance to a psychiatric institution. His art though was a great support for him, and he felt working would make him better. He also hoped his art would be consoling to others. 

The Yellow House (The Street), 1888

or

Vincent's dream?

Vincent’s dream was to have his own artists’ community in his Yellow House in Arles. When his painter friend Paul Gauguin arrived in October 1888, this dream seemed to come true. At first, the artists worked happily side by side, but soon the situation deteriorated.

Discussions about art became more frequent, and sometimes heated. Vincent found it important to work from reality. Gauguin painted from memory, from his imagination.

What kind of chair are you?

The difference of opinion between the two friends is clearly visible in these two works. You could see them as portraits of the artists.

In Vincent’s painting Gauguin’s Chair, the lamp, candlestick, and the book refer to the nocturnal dream world, and therefore to the imagination. In Van Gogh’s Chair, the onions represent nature, i.e. painting from reality.

December 23, 1888

Still life with a plate of onions, 1889

or

Self-help literature by candle light?

Slow Recovery

Fortunately, there was no need to commit Vincent to a psychiatric hospital then. He slowly recovered and was allowed to go home after two weeks. There, he tried to pick up the pieces and began painting again. He wrote to Theo, ‘…I didn’t know that one could break one’s brain and that afterwards that got better too.’

In addition to two self-portraits of him with his bandaged ear, Vincent created this still life with onions.

He included mostly personal objects, such as his pipe and tobacco. Placed beside these are the envelope of a letter by his brother Theo, an empty bottle of absinthe, and a popular handbook that he consulted for self-medication.

Garden of the Asylum, 1889

or

A nice walk outside after feeling anxious?

Unfortunately, Vincent’s situation soon deteriorated again. More crises and hospitalisations followed. During the attacks, Vincent was utterly confused and had no idea what he was saying or doing. This affected not only him, but also the people around him.

His friends and family were worried, his neighbours had even become afraid of him. They started a petition to ensure that Vincent was locked up in a psychiatric hospital. In the petition, they declared he was 'not of sound mind, and is the subject of fear of all the residents of the neighbourhood'.

Vincent recovered, eventually, making a compulsory admission unnecessary. But he knew things couldn’t go on like this. Vincent wanted to stay in Arles, but no longer dared to live on his own.

In May 1889, he voluntarily had himself admitted to the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole psychiatric hospital in Saint-Rémy.

Doctor Gachet, 1890

or

Thoughtfull conversations in the garden?

After several crisis (doctors diagnosed him with epilepsy) Vincent left Saint-Remy. 

in May 1890, he left for Auvers in northern France. There, he was closer to Theo, who lived in Paris. Dr Gachet from Auvers was asked to take care of him.

Vincent found it difficult to deal with the uncertainty about his future and illness. He felt lonely and depressed. Nevertheless, he was exceptionally productive in Auvers. Within a period of seventy days, he produced some 75 paintings and over a hundred sketches and drawings of the picturesque village and vast cornfields and forests surrounding it.

Nature gave him comfort and strength. And despite the uncertainty about his future, Vincent continued to believe in the healing power of painting.

You can read more about Vincent’s final months in Auvers in the story ‘The End of a Difficult Road’.

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/art-and-stories/stories

Open up with vincent

Museum

Mindfullness

Online

Meditation video's

Classroom

Mental Health Narratives in Lesson Up

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam houses most of Vincent van Goghs paintings and drawings, and almost all of his letters. Especially these letters shed light on Vincents ambitions as an artist, his joys ànd tragedies in art and life. Mental health is also part of his story. 

The Van Gogh Museum is located in Amsterdam and is dedicated to preserving and showcasing the works of Vincent van Gogh. The museum also works to promote mental health awareness and reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness.

The Van Gogh Museum has several initiatives aimed at promoting mental health awareness, including guided tours for people with dementia and their caregivers, and a program called 'Meet Vincent van Gogh' which allows visitors to experience the artist's life through interactive exhibits.

Mindfullness at the museum

What is mindfullness

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is about the art of being present in the here and now, being fully aware of present experience. Mindfulness boosts your well-being, helps you cope better with the difficult aspects of life, and promotes your mental health and sense of well-being.

Art and mindfullness

Works of art are a great source or "anchor" to practice mindfulness with. Among other things, mindfulness is experienced with your senses, such as looking. This makes a museum a nice, accessible place. You step out of the delusion of the day, look at art, and let yourself be amazed.

Explain the specific efforts of the Van Gogh Museum to promote mental health awareness and reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness.

Online

LessonUp Materials

The museum has several lessons about mental health, which you can find via this link:

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/van-gogh-at-school/secondary-schools/lessons

Introduce the LessonUp materials available on the Van Gogh Museum's website and how to access them.

Topics

• Courage and doing your own thing
• Sad feelings and depression
• Stress and pressure of study
• Friendship and asking for help

Provide an overview of the LessonUp on mental health and creativity.

What does a lesson look like?

Provide an overview of the LessonUp on art therapy and mental health.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.