Vincent Willem Van Gogh was born to Theodorus Van Gogh and Anna Carbentus on March 30, 1853, in the Dutch city of Zundert. He was the eldest of 5 younger brothers, one of whom was Theo Van Gogh. Despite being a successful student and achieving high grades, Vincent left school at the age of 16 to begin an apprenticeship at Goupil and Cie. Goupil and Cie he was an art dealer of whom his uncle was a partner. His younger brother, Theo, also worked as an apprentice at the company. Despite his passion for art, he reportedly disliked the art trade. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay He began his apprenticeship in The Hague, then moved to London and finally to Paris, where he was fired from the company in 1876. He traveled around Europe attempting odd jobs, including teaching and the priesthood, before to discover his love of drawing and painting in 1880. He returned to live with his parents in 1881, but still traveled periodically. His brother Theo, having succeeded as an art dealer at Goupil e Cie, supported him financially during this period. To repay him, Vincent sent him some artwork to sell in France. However, at the time, the paintings were not purchased or well received. In 1888 Vincent was said to have cut off his own ear as a gift to a former prostitute who often modeled for him. However, in reality this may have been the work of his roommate at the time, the painter Paul Gauguin, who was also a talented fencer. Some scholars theorize that Gauguin cut off Vincent's ear during a dispute and that Vincent lied to cover up for his roommate. After this incident he was hospitalized until 1889. After that he was admitted to a mental hospital for about a year. During his time there, he created over 150 paintings, including some of his most famous works. “Starry Night” depicted the view from the window of his room and “Irises” was a study of the irises growing in the hospital garden. In 1890 he painted his famous painting “Almond Blossom” for his brother Theo's newborn son, also named Vincent Willem Van Gogh in honor of his uncle. 1890 is the year Vincent's artwork began to be sold, exhibited, and generally well reviewed by the public, although not on today's scale. After his release from the psychiatric hospital, he moved to France. On July 27, 1890, Vincent left the inn where he was staying with his art supplies, presumably headed for a cornfield where he liked to paint. He returned 5 hours later without his painting materials, but with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. He died from this wound two days later, on the 29th, at the age of 37. Although it was long thought to be a suicide, new evidence indicates that he was most likely accidentally shot by another person. A popular theory has it that he was killed by the younger brother of a neighborhood boy he had befriended for a love of art. The younger brother is said to have often teased Vincent and kept a gun as part of a costume. Vincent, despite reviling suicide at a young age as an act of “moral cowardice,” insisted to both the police and his brother that he had killed himself and that no one else was to blame for his death. It is thought he was covering for the boys to protect their identities. Unfortunately, we will probably never know what really happened. Van Gogh's painting style is very recognizable. The bright colors, which he found very important, and the short brushstrokes are a characteristic for him.