BellaOnline Forums Health and Fitness Mental Health The Mental Anguish of Vincent van Gogh

Oh, if I could have worked without this cursed disease, what things I might have done…
~ Vincent Van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh is known as one of the most talented post-impressionist artists, most notably for his works Starry Night and Irises. Sadly, he is also remembered as the artist who shockingly cut off a piece of his ear. His struggle with mental health issues also led to his early death at the age of thirty-seven.

The Mental Anguish of Vincent van Gogh

It is said that there is a fine line between genius and insanity. It's all too true. Dare I venture that if Van Gogh did not have his "cursed disease" he might not have felt driven to create in the manner in which he created. He may not have had an open portal to his subconscious through which many of his inspirations flowed.

If he didn't have those off-putting social behaviors, he might have fit in all too well and ended up being a "proper" man of society with a steady but mundane job in order to provide for a wife and children.

He never would have painted one of his most beloved works, "Starry Night" as it was, as you mentioned in your article, a reflection of his erratic moods.

Sometimes, our gifts come with a hitch. I'm learning that pretty much everyone has a "hitch" and by embracing it or learning how to manage it...we can open up our gifts.

Thank You for posting this article Dr. Hershey.

I'm very much akin to Mr. Van Gogh, although I achieved no timeless great work.

It still feels eerily similar to my situation.

-- Burt B.

Great article. I know Van Gogh more so for his sunflower paintings, but I do admire his other work. He certainly did have a tragic life, and only with his physical death did he find peace.

My father endured mental illness, yet he was a very brilliant man. He passed at the age of 50, not by his own hand but because he was not mentally capable of caring for his own medical conditions. His heart finally gave out and he had stomach cancer, which we did not know about until he passed on.

Like Lori indicated, sometimes our gifts come with a hitch.

Hi all,
Thank you for your kind words and for reading my article.
I really enjoyed learning more about Van Gogh. I am sure he would have preferred a loving relationship and a more stable life. It sounded like he suffered so...
And to die at such a young age.
It is true that emotional pain/anguish, many times, has been the catalyst for some of the most creative geniuses in our history.

Debbie, I am so sorry about your father.

Thank you. My father passed quite a few years ago and I am not sad anymore. It truly was a blessing for him to leave this realm, to finally be free from the burdens of his illness. He is at peace.