History of Art: The Stone Age

"The Stone Age was a time thousands of years ago, when humans lived in caves and jungles. Life was simple, and there were only two main things to do - to protect themselves from the wild animals and to gather food...."

The Stone Age: 30,000 BCE - 2,500 BCE

Characteristics: Cave painting, fertility goddesses, megalithic structures

Chief Artists and Major Works: Lascaux Cave Painting, Woman of Willendorf, Stonehenge

Historical Events: Ice Age ends (10,000 BCE - 8,000 BCE); New Stone Age and first permanent settlements (8,000 BCE - 2,500 BCE)

The Stone Age is the first known era of humanity where we killed and mated for survival. As far as we know, humanity at that stage did just that to survive in what was then, the wild, especially after the end of the Ice Age.

However, Art played a vital part in telling the story of their lives and beliefs to us now. The Stone Age art illustrates the early human creativity through small objects, early sculptures and architecture (such as Stonehenge and Avebury), and of course, cave paintings.

Whenever researching "Stone Age Art", you will always come across three different periods;

The Paleolithic Period

Spanning from 30,000 BCE to 10,000 BCE this is the longest phase of human history. Also known as The Old Stone Age, the span of this is not totally known and can vary from website to website, however the beginning can range from 40,000 BCE to 30,000 BCE. The very earliest human artifacts show evidence of workmanship with an artistic purpose are the subject of some debate, but it is clear that such workmanship existed 40,000 years ago. The most outstanding feature was the development of the human species - Homo sapiens.

By 20,000 BCE, human settlements of hunters and gatherers were all over the world, with an exception of Antarctica. The earliest settlements occurred in Africa, where rock paintings and engravings represented the oldest form of art found in this continent. Depictions of stylized human figures and richly coloured animals were used for magical purposes in order to ensure a successful hunt. Paleolithic people were generally nomadic hunters and gathers who sheltered in caves, used fire and fashioned stone tools.

The different cultures within the Paleolithic Period are identified by their distinctive stone-tool industries.

During this time, Art was being explored on the walls of the caves, of which they told stories of hunts and myths that were around in that day and age. Most people think of cave paintings when the Stone Age is mentioned, however many people don't realise there is a lot more. Fine art came into play within this era.

The oldest known form of art was found on every continent expect Antarctica dating from at least 290,000 BCE. This art was named "Cupules". This was invented by archeologist Robert G. Bednarikto to describe simple, round hemispheric cavities, used to be known as "pits", "hollows", "cups", "cupels", "cup stones", "pitmarks", "cup marks" and "pot-holes". The oldest piece was found in an ancient quartzite cave called Auditorium Cave, Bhimbetka, Madhya Pradesh, in North Central India. This cave is 25m long horizontal cave and in the center stands a boulder called Chief's Rock which stands 2.5m high and 3.4m wide. In 1990, nine cupules were found on Chief's Rock and a year later a further cupule was found with meandering line next to it. These were covered by deposits from the Acheulian and later periods, so allowing dating. However, micro-erosion analysis suggested that these cupules were made 700,000 years ago.

Cave art can allow us to understand more about the ways of our ancestors, such as how they hunted and ate, how they viewed and understand the world around them. The cave, or rock art can generally be divided into either Petroglyphs (carvings into stone surfaces), Pictographs (rock and cave paintings) and Petroforms (art made by aligning or piling natural stones).

The Mesolithic Period

The Mesolithic Period, or the Middle Stone Age was the shortest of the Stone Age periods spanning from 10,000 BCE till 8,000 BCE.

The cultures in the Middle Stone Age included gradual domestication of plants and animals, formations of settled communities, the use of the bow, and the development of delicate stone microliths and pottery.

From the Paleolithic through the Mesolithic, cave paintings and portable art such as figurines, statuettes, and beads predominated, with decorative figured workings also seen on some utiliarian objects. Venus figurines were also becoming more popular. Venus figurines are an umbrella term for a number of prehistoric female statuettes protrayed with similar physical attributes. They were carves from soft stone and the latter are among the oldest ceramic known. Also in this period, personal accessories and adornments were made from shell and bone.

Archaeological discoveries across Europe found over two hundred caves with spectacular paintings, drawings and sculptures that are among the earliest undisputed of representational image-making. Paintings and engravings along the caves' walls and ceilings fall under the category of parietal art.

The Neolithic Period

This last period saw the transformation of nomad human settlements into agrarian societies in need of permanent shelter. From this, there is evidence of early pottery, as well as sculpture, architecture and the construction of megaliths. Weaving also came around in the New Stone Age that spanned from 8,000 BCE to 3,000 BCE.

Bibliography:
Google Search

Ancient Craft

Art Lex

Boundless

Next: Mesopotamian Art

History of Art

The general response to the words "The History of Art" is a huff and a moan...

...But let me change your mind...

Within the next few weeks I plan to take you through the whole of the History of Art, attempting to make it enjoyable as it is for me, for you!

Keep your eyes peeled for the start with "The Stone Age"

(not shown on this timeline)

Paint

"The program or the physical gloopy art stuff?"

Paint, as many people know, comes in different types, packets and of course colours. This is your quick guide to the many different types of paint that is out there in the world.

1. Oil Paint - This is a thick and slow drying paint with a strong colour. It is great for pieces that includes plenty of colour and even better for textured paintings. However, oil paint can be expensive and they are not the best paint for beginners.
   
2. Water-colour Paint - These are can be much thinner paints compared to oil paints (it does depend if you have a pallet of water-colours or tubes of them, depending on the thickness and intensity of the colour). They can be great for their colour, even though you have to mix most of them yourself. Water-colour paint is one of the best for quick, slightly rough painting, and is one of the best paints to use for landscapes.
   
3. Poster Paint - Poster paint is the best for children as it dries relatively quick, it's cheaper than all other paints and you can have lots of fun with it without worrying about it going everywhere. It doesn't have the strongest of colours, nor textures, which is makes it best for kids.
   
4. Acrylic Paint - This paint is my favorite and I personally use it all the time. It is not the most expensive of the paints, and produces some wonderful colours. It doesn't take half as long to dry as oil paints do. Acrylic paints are the best for young artists, GCSE and A level students, or anyone who has art as a hobby.  These paints also come in one of the widest variety of colours that you could possibly see and with every company, there is a slightly different shade, creating even more shades. This paint is also the best to experiment with. I shall emphasize this again and again, acrylic paint is fabulous.
   
5. Printing Paint - This paint is used for many different things, of which includes monoprinting. This is a very slow drying paint (not as fast as acrylic, but not as slow as oil!). It allows you to paint a lot of detail or a large surface without drying, so you can press on to it and still get the whole pattern. It is easy to mix and not one of the well known types of paint. It is the best to do monoprinting with.
   

Rob Pointon

"Rob Pointon is without question one of the most exciting artists working and living in the UK."

Rob Pointon happy at work

As part of my GCSE coursework, one of my artists that I studied over the 2 years was Rob Pointon. I first saw his work at The Crick Show- a boat show, mainly for narrowboats. Unfortunately I didn't meet him here as he just finished a painting and went to get some refreshments and leave his painting to dry. Although he wasn't there personally, co-workers of his told me that he aims to support all young artists. Soon after, I emailed him about using him as an artist study in my GCSE art and he seemed enthralled. As soon as I saw his work, I was able to spot inspiration from artists old and young, everyone from Monet to Van Gogh, I was able to see in his work. On his website, he is described as "without question one of the most exciting artists working and living in the UK" and I can certainly agree with it.

The Crick Show, where I first saw Rob Pointons' work

Rob Pointon brings a new perspective to painting. An understanding of drawing can be seen at the core of his work, although now working mainly in oils and working 'en plein air'. Rob has a great distinguishing characteristic in his use of a wide-angle perspective- at times as far as 360° "which enables him to encompass a phenomenal sense of the world around him in a single canvas". 

A photo of his work alongside the area he painted, presumably in the English Canal System

At such a young age, Rob has already travelled to many countries and taken a year to travel the canals of Britain, while painting. All his paintings from this year trip have been put on display around the country in exhibitions called 'Year of the Boat'. Rob has also painted over 75 paintings and has been awarded the 'Young Artist Award from NADFAS (2005)'. He has now continued to paint and exhibit his work around the country.

Cronk Hill

Using oil paints with bright, vibrant colours, Rob creates detailed and realistic paintings grasping the beauty of some unnatural places. He says himself "On the boat you slowly and silently glide through this alien cathedral of artificial noise and vibration..." I also find that Rob's paintings has an abstract feel about them, because of his use of wide-angle perspective.

Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

On his website he is described as; "Rob Pointon is without question one of the most exciting artists working and living in the UK. His exceptional talents have been recognised by a hst of comissions and acquisitions by high profile collectors, of whom the list  is headed by HRH The Prince of Wales and Her Grace Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire. Rob was the Regional Winner in last year's Fine Art Open Competition at Weston Park and works that he subsequently produced of the V Festival and Guild of British Travel Writers Dinner were purchased by the Trustees of the Weston Park Foundation as a part of the inalienable collections of that House where they have joined the ranks of exceptional and internationally significant works by John Constable, Sir Anthony van Dyck and Holbein. Born in North Staffordshire, Rob is proud of his Potteries roots and, unsurprisingly, the industries and their legacy within that region feature frequently in his works. Having graduated with First Class honours from the University of Wales Aberystwyth, Rob undertook a postgraduate course at The Prince's Drawing School in London. An understanding of drawing can be seen at the core of Rob's works, although now working predominantly in oils and working en plein air. The great distinguishing characteristic is his use of a wide-angle perspective - at times as far as 360 degrees - which enables him to encompass a phenomenal of the world around him within a single canvas.' Gareth J.L. Williams M.A., Curator and Head of Learning to the Weston Park Foundation

Chirk Aqueduct

A copy of Rob Pointon's work as part of my GCSE coursework

Free Ways to Advertise Art

I found advertising art can be challenging in todays society, especially with thousands upon millions of people who are trying to do the same thing! 

Thinking big? Try something out of the box!

For this reason, I have come up with my 2 top ways to advertise art today;

As an aspiring artist myself, I am always looking to get the best advertising of my art to get it selling and to create a decent income from it. People have always heard of my art through word of mouth. This, if you did Business Communication Studies, can be counted as one of the most effective types of advertising that has ever been created. Bonus: word of mouth advertising is free! However, you do have to be confident at showing your art. For example, if someone sees you draw, ask them if they want to see any other pieces of art of yours and drop in a hint that you sell art work and then see if they're interested! If you do commissions, say that too as many people want unique drawings. Let friends and family know that you sell art and do commissions because you never know who they talk to who could help your art career go boom!

Social media will always be a favourite for everyone. If you're not on some sort of social media such as; Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, Google+, then I suggest that you get an account and fast. I have had a couple of commissions just from showing work in progress shots on my Instagram account (@lottiemoox). Hundreds of artists display their artwork online (but be careful of copying (see Warning for more details!)) and also sell it so go get wifi and get advertising!

Progression

I am never one to boast when I have finished a piece of art but I am proud I have finished this one, so I decided to share it with the world.

A bit of background story (not that any Directioners need it):Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, and of course, Harry Styles. These boys make up the famous group English-Irish pop group otherwise known as One Direction.

Turn back the clock to July 2010 and auditions for the UK's X Factor were underway. Five young boys from various parts of the UK and Ireland had entered the competition with nothing else but a passion for singing and raw talent. Their names were Niall (from Westmeath, Ireland), Zayn (from Bradford), Liam (from Wolverhampton), Harry (from Cheshire) and Louis (from Doncaster) and they had all entered as solo artists. Arriving to their individual auditions, they were given the chance of impressing the judges. And they did. But just not quite how they imagined. It was during the Bootcamp round of the competition that Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh had to give the boys the bad news that they hadn't made it through as solo artists. They were devastated, but they were offered a suggestion. The judges wanted them t form a group; to learn to sing as a five-piece rather than individuals. The boys jumped at the chance and One Direction was born.

Zayn says, “I didn’t think I would ever want to be in a group. But when I was there and it was happening, and I knew the lads a bit, there was no way I was going to say ‘no’. We’ve all got quite different sounding voices and our own individual style, so we can play up to that and play to each of our strengths.“

Louis adds with sincerity, “To start off with it was difficult because we all had our egos and we wanted to get ourselves across in the group. It was tough. Now, we’re literally like five best friends.” 

Fast forward four months and the boys were impressing an average of 16 million viewers with their performances each weekend. They sang world-famous tracks like Kim Wilde’s Kids In America, Kelly Clarkson’s My Life Would Suck Without You and Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars – they confidence rocketed and the country kept on voting for them to stay in the competition. 

It was clear the UK were falling in love with the band. In the final, the boys were given the opportunity to perform with multi-million-selling artist Robbie Williams. He backed their bid to win and wished the awe-struck boys the best. On 12 December 2010, One Direction were crowned the third place winners of The X Factor 2010 - and although they hadn’t come first, it was clear they had already attracted a huge fan base. In the run up to their win, hundreds of girls would wait outside the TV studios in London just to get a glimpse of their favourite new group and they were already receiving sack-loads of fan mail. There was no way this new group could be ignored. 

The boys, however, kept their feet on the ground. They hadn’t won the series and didn’t know if they could find the support to keep making music – although by now, disbanding was not an option, they had come so far and were great friends. Louis explains, “We came from nothing, and had no experience as a group at all. By the time we came to the end of the show, we were a completely different group. We worked so hard, and achieved so much. We also became really close mates – we’re just all so grateful that we got along so well from the start.”

It was just after Christmas that the boys got a call from Simon Cowell, who asked them to attend a meeting at Syco Records head offices in London to discuss their future. On that day, he delivered to them some good news - he would sign them to Syco, they had a record deal! Harry says: “Simon Cowell was telling you your life was about to change! It was weird. I feel incredibly lucky to have the life I do.” The group immediately went on tour, playing two months of shows on the X Factor Live Tour. They travelled across the UK and Ireland meeting fans as they went, playing to thousands of people every night. In that time, they even managed to put together a book about their experiences so far – Forever Young – it even made the best-sellers lists. These five boys were certainly not afraid to work for their success.

And it was after the tour and the book publication that One Direction made it into the studio to work on their first album. It was already Spring and they could not wait to start recording. It turned out, there were quite a few big producers and writers who wanted the chance to work with One Direction – and it was only when they hit the studio, did they realise just how ‘big’ these names were! The began writing with the likes of Rami Yacoub (Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and Bon Jovi) and legendary producers such as Steve Mac (who has worked with JLS, Leona Lewis and Westlife). Even Red One (Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Sean Kingston) also became involved. Niall humbly explains, “These guys are amazing. Basically, name one of the biggest hits of the past ten years, and the guys we worked with will be behind them. To even meet them was incredible. To work with them was even better!”

The group put together an album of thirteen tracks, which they later named Up All Night. And by Autumn 2011, it was ready for release. “I want people to listen to it and say, ‘Wow, is that One Direction?’. It’s not too cheesy - I think it’s the kind of album that guys will like as well as girls,” Louis revealed at the time.

One Direction’s debut single, What Makes You Beautiful (Rami Yacoub, Carl Falk, Savan Kotecha), was released on 11 September 2011 in the UK – but remarkably, it was breaking records before it even went on sale. It became the biggest pre-order in Sony’s single history and went in at number one in the UK and Irish charts as soon as it was on iTunes. The boys cemented their success by selling a staggering 153,000 in their first week of release, with the fun California-shot video providing the perfect backdrop to one of the summer’s biggest tracks.  Zayn says, “To think we’ve sold the most number of pre-orders when you know some of the artists who have released records through Sony is incredible! We can’t believe it. It’s the most amazing thing.”

In December, the boys headed off on the sold out Up All Night tour which saw them play over 60 dates across the UK and Ireland.“The best thing about being in 1D is that you get to travel around with four of your best friends,” notes Harry. “We’re having real fun, doing what we love to do. It’s brilliant and I never want it to change.” February 2012 saw the boys win their first BRIT Award for Best Single at the famous award ceremony in London. And with their successes growing, it was time to take the 1D family abroad.

While the UK applauded the boys success, the news came that they had been offered a record deal in America – they were to sign to Columbia Records. The deal was made and in February 2012, Niall, Zayn, Liam, Harry and Louis went out to America to promote their debut single.

They began a gruelling tour of the States, visiting radio stations and fans wherever they could and playing on world-renowned TV shows like The Today Show and Saturday Night Live. And their hard work paid off –‘What Makes You Beautiful’ debuted at No.28 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the highest entry for a British group’s debut single since the Spice Girls ‘Wannabe’ in 1997.

As One Direction continued on their travels, so the 1D Mania grew and the phenomenon gathered meteoric pace. Fans would line the streets outside studios, hotels and malls, hoping to meet their idols.

In March 2012, the news came that Up All Night had entered the US Billboard 200 chart at number one – making music history as the first UK group to debut at No.1 with the debut album.

The boys had done it, they’d officially cracked America! It wasn’t just America either – Up All Night had gone to number one in 15 different countries across the world including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Sweden and Mexico. 

The group celebrated this astounding achievement by announcing they would play a headline show at the incredible Madison Square Garden in New York in December – a venue that has played host to the likes of Michael Jackson, Elton John, The Foo Fighters, Madonna and The Rolling Stones. “We actually can’t believe we got a number one album in America,” Harry laughs. “We’re just teenage boys, how did that happen? And now we get to play some of the most incredible venues in the world. We’re so lucky.”

April saw One Direction pick up two Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice awards in LA, where they performed on stage alongside the likes of Katy Perry and Justin Bieber and in front of the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama. Their success was unprecedented and they now even had a celebrity following with the likes of Joe Jonas, Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift speaking out about how much they adored these five boys from over the pond. “That was one of the most surreal days ever,” Liam revealed at the time. “Will Smith, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Michelle Obama - wow what it going on with my life!”

In celebration, they took their Up All Night tour to Australia and New Zealand. And it was from there that they announced that they will be going on an arena tour around North America this summer and then again in 2013 as part of their World Tour. Niall smiles, “We’re very lucky lads. And we can’t wait to tour North America in the summer. And I’m so proud to be flying the flag for Ireland.”

Contemplating their whirlwind rise to fame and their amazing success, Liam smiles, “It’s amazing to think back to when we were first put together - and to the point we are at now. Things have moved so quickly, it’s got all of us in a massive state of shock. It’s so surreal to think of everything - like wining the BRIT, doing our first UK tour, having our first number one. I can’t believe all of this has happened to us five lucky guys. We love our fans and owe all our success entirely to them – we want them to know that.”
“And not only have I had a lot of fun making music and working in the music industry but I’ve made the four best mates and four brothers that I’d always wanted. I couldn’t ask to work with four nicer guys and I’m very proud to be in One Direction.”

Propelled to international success by social media, One Direction's three albums Up All Night, Take Me Home, and Midnight Memories broke records, topped charts in most major markets and generated hit singles including "What Makes You Beautiful", "Live While We're Young" and "Story of My Life".

So far One Direction have achieved; 

61 album and single no.1's worldwide

The last album, Take Me Home, was no.1 in 37 countries

Their debut album, Up All Night, became no.1 in 17 countries

The only UK band to have their first 2 albums debut at 1 in US

The first British band since The Beatles to have 2 no.1 albums in the same year in the US

Winners of 2 Brit Awards in 2012 for Best British Single and 2013 for Global Success Award

Awarded 3 MTV VMA's and 3 MTV EMA's

Received NRJ award for Best International Group

Won 3 Billboard Music Awards for Top Duo/Group, Top New Artist, Top Pop Artist

2 x Sunday times bestselling books

A sold out 2013 UK Arena tour

Over 18.5 million Facebook fans and 71 million combined followers on Twitter

The final original drawing of One Direction. Copies to be sold soon. Follow me on Instagram (@lottiemoox) for more drawings!

33 things to cure artist block

Have you ever had one of those days or weeks where you want to draw something but you can't? Well, here's 33 tips to cure your artist block

1. Listen to music
2. Stay positive
3. Remain focused
4. Take a break
5. Exercise
6. Be confident in yourself
7. Mindmap
8. Find new inspiration pieces
9. Go outside
10. Keep a notepad on you at all times
11. Copy from other artists instead of creating your own work
12. Do a life drawing session
13. Doodle
14. Change mediums
15. Take a new direction
16. Draw something different- anatomy for example
17. Read things that will stimulate the visual vortex
18. Re-design something e.g. old cartoons, manga, etc
19. Leave it for a week
20. Just do it
21. Find yourself a genius
22. Talk through it
23. Sleep
24. Read some books
25. Meditate
26. Do some yoga
27. Force yourself to procrastinate
28. Keep busy with other things
29. Sit down, shut up, go off-line
30. Go and sit in the park and watch the world go buy
31. Do some photography
32. Search for excitement
33. Draw the same thing for 30 days in different ways

Help!

I have had over 130 views on my blog this month, and I have to thank everyone for that because I don't believe how many people view it!

However, I need your help because I make this to help people or inform people of art and everything to do with art. But I want to know what you want me to post!
Please comment below!

Hyperrealism

"Hyperrealism is a genre of painting and sculpture resembling a high-resolution photograph."

The early 21st Century Hyperrealism was founded on the aesthetic principles of Photorealism. American painter Denis Peterson, whose pioneering works are universally viewed as an offshot of Photorealism, first used "Hyperrealism" to apply to the new movement and its splinter group of artists.
However, Hyperrealism is contrasted with the literal approach found in traditional photorealist paintings of the late 20th Century. Hyperrealist painters and sculptors use photographic images as a reference source from which to create a more definitive and detailed rendering, one that often, unlike Photorealism, is narrative and emotive in its depictions.

Hyperrealism, although photographic in essence, often entails a softer, much more complex focus on the subject depicted, presenting it as a living, tangible object. These objects and scenes in Hyperrealism paintings and sculptures are meticulously detailed to create the illusion of a reality not seen in the original photo. This is not to say they're surreal, as the illusion is a convincing depiction of (simulated) reality. Textures, surfaces, lighting effects, and shadows appear clearer and more distinct than the reference photo or even the actual subject itself.

Subject matter ranges from portraits, figurative art, still life, landscpaes, cityscapes and narrative scenes. The more recent hyperrealist style is much more literal than Photorealism as to exact pictorial detail with an emphasis on social, cultural or political themes. 

Hyperreal paintings and sculptures further create a tangible solidity and physical presence through subtle lighting and shading effects. Shapes, forms and areas closest to the forefront of the image visually appear beyond the frontal plane of the canvas, and in the case of sculptures, details have more clarity than in nature. Hyperrealistic images are typically 10 to 20 times the size of the original photographic reference source, yet retain an extremely high resolution in colour, precision and detail. Many of the painting are achieved with an airbrush, using acrylics, oils or a combination of both.

VVG

Vincent Van Gogh

Vincent Van Gogh can be counted as one of the most famous and remembered artists in history. 

He was once shunned as mad and tortured because he could see the world in a way that no one else could. Van Goghs' work is now some of the most recognizable work in the world due to the way that he painted and drew his work.

Starry Night

Van Gogh was born in 1853 and grew up in Holland with a religious family due to his father being a minister. When his school ended, Vincent followed his Uncle's profession and became an art dealer. He learnt the trade in Holland and then came to work in England and France. He was successful and initially happy with his work however, he grew tired of the business of art, especcialy in Paris, and lost interest in the trading of art. Vincent returned home where he began to study theology. Even though he was passionate and enthusiastic, he failed exams to enter a couple of programmes. He then worked as a missionary in a coal mining community with hard working poor common people. As his devlopment as a preacher was stalling, his interest in those around him was increasing. His life as an artist was beginning.

Wheat Field with Cypresses

When Van Gogh was 27 years old, he entered the Academie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Belgium. The following winter, living in Amsterdam, Vincent fell in love, had his heart broken, and began painting. The next few years would result in little success in both love and art.

Potato Eaters, painted in 1885 was Van Gogh's first major piece of work. At this time, he was also still having difficulty finding love, but was beginning to receive interest in his paintings. He was now fully devoting himself to painting; living frugally, studying colour theory, and admiring works of other artists such as Peter Paul Rubens. Sadly, Vincent found that his paintings were difficult to sell, which carried on throughout his life. Theo, as his brother and an art dealer, suggested that there should be more colour in his work. Impressionism was becoming popular at this time with bright and vivid colours, while Vincent's work was painting peasants and rural landscapes using dark earth tones.

Sunflowers

After this, Vincent moved to Paris where his art began to take on the style that would make him famous. In Paris, he talked about art to some of the most avant-garde and influential artists of his time - painters such as Gauguin, Bernard, and Toulouse-Lautrec. He proceeded to use more colour and applying the paint with thick, bold brushstrokes. Vincent also began to paint all that was surrounding him. One of his dreams was to start an art colony in Arles in the south of France. Vincent moved here where he was later on joined by Gauguin. While there, Van Gogh entered the most productive and creative period of his life. It was at this time Van Gogh painted his famous Sunflowers. However, it was also a time of great turmoil for Vincent as he was beginning a period of hospital stays for mental illness and physical decline.

After just ten years of painting and producing some 900 paintings, Vincent Van Gogh committed suicide in 1890. Even though he was never fully appreciated in his own time, it wouldn't take long for the art world to recognise the genius they lost. Within twenty years of his death, there were memorial shows of his works all over the world - influencing generations of artists to come.

Vincent Van Gogh's last painting; Wheat Field with Crows

For me, Vincent Van Gogh is one of the most inspirational artists that you can find. Even though he may have been classed as mentally ill, he has painted in a way that no other artist has dared to paint which not only makes his work unique but makes him unique too.

Doctor Who and Vincent Van Gogh