KS1 (Age 5-7)KS2 (Age 7-11)11 Plus (Age 7-11)KS3 (Age 11-14)GCSE (Age 14-17)PSHE A.I.ESL Spanish Specialist Games

Need help with Painter - Vincent van Gogh? Ask our AI Tutor!

AI Tutor - Lucy

Connecting with Tutor...

Please wait while we establish connection

Hi! I'm Lucy, your AI tutor. How can I help you with Painter - Vincent van Gogh today?

now

A self-portrait by van Gogh, painted 2 years before his death, when the artist was 35 years old.

Painter - Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh’s bold colour and energetic brushwork made his paintings unforgettable. Learn about his Post-Impressionist style, common themes, and techniques you can spot.

Explore the Topic →

(quiz starts below)

Fascinating Fact:

He began his artistic career relatively late, starting at about age 27. In around a decade he produced about 900 paintings and 1,100 drawings.

Vincent van Gogh is often linked with Post-Impressionism, a style that uses colour, texture, and visible brushstrokes to express feeling. Many of his works focus on everyday subjects like landscapes, portraits, and still life.

Key Terms

Post-Impressionism: Art that developed after Impressionism, often using stronger colour and more personal expression.
Impasto: Thick paint applied so brush marks or palette-knife textures stand out on the surface.
Still life: An artwork showing arranged objects, such as flowers, fruit, or household items.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is Vincent van Gogh known for?

Vincent van Gogh is known for intense colour, expressive brushstrokes, and paintings of landscapes, portraits, and still life. His work is widely associated with Post-Impressionism.

What is impasto and why did Van Gogh use it?

Impasto is a technique where paint is applied thickly so the surface becomes textured. Van Gogh used it to make marks more energetic and to help light catch on the raised paint.

What does Post-Impressionism mean in Van Gogh’s art?

In Van Gogh’s art, Post-Impressionism means moving beyond quick snapshots of light and instead using colour and brushwork to show mood and emotion. The paint marks are often meant to be seen, not hidden.

Try These Related Quizzes

For a closer look at the pictures, please click on them to enlarge.

1 .

Van Gogh deliberately chose unattractive models for this painting of peasants sitting down for a meal. What is the painting's name?

A Peasant Supper

Dinner Time

The Potato Eaters

An Earthy Meal

Van Gogh wanted to give a realistic portrayal of farm labourers. In his own words, "I really have wanted to make it so that people get the idea that these folk, who are eating their potatoes by the light of their little lamp, have tilled the earth themselves with these hands they are putting in the dish, and so it speaks of manual labour and... that they have thus honestly earned their food"

2 .

The Bedroom is a painting Van Gogh made of his bedroom in the Yellow House in Arles. The door on the left side of the picture led to a guest room where which other artist slept?

Gauguin

Monet

Renoir

Manet

Gaugin spent nine weeks in Van Gogh's house in Arles and the two men painted together. Their relationship was a strained one however, and Gaugin left shortly after the notorious incident in which van Gogh mutilated his own ear

3 .

Also painted at Arles in the same year as the previous painting (1888) this piece is entitled Starry Night Over... which river?

Starry Night Over the Garonne

Starry Night Over the Aude

Starry Night Over the Adour

Starry Night Over the Rhone

The river was just a few minutes walk from the Yellow House where the artist was living at the time. The subject of lights at night time fascinated Van Gough. Here we can see the lights on the river bank reflected in the water and almost mirroring the stars in the night sky. The constellation of the Plough is clearly visible

4 .

Also painted at Arles, and with a theme of light at night time, The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum was originally entitled what?

Tables, and Stars

Coffeehouse, in the evening

Drinkers, in Darkness

Bar, at night

It was first exhibited in 1891 under the title Café, le Soir (Coffeehouse, in the evening) and is another example of van Gogh's fascination with light in darkness. Of this painting he said, "Here you have a night painting without black, with nothing but beautiful blue and violet and green and in this surrounding the illuminated area colours itself sulphur pale yellow and citron green... it is the only way to get away from our conventional night with poor pale whitish light, while even a simple candle already provides us with the richest of yellows and oranges"

5 .

One of a series of paintings on the same subject, Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers was briefly the most expensive work of art when in 1987 it was sold for what price?

£44,750,000

£34,750,000

£24,750,000

£14,750,000

The record did not last for long. Later that same year another van Gogh painting, Irises, was bought for $53.9 million (£31,580,000)

6 .

Wheat Field with Cypresses is the title of three almost identical works by van Gogh which were painted in 1889 whilst the artist was living where?

A private school

An abbey

A hermitage

A mental health asylum

Saint Paul de Mausole was a monastery and mental asylum which van Gogh voluntarily admitted himself to whilst his health was suffering. He stayed there from May 1889 until May 1890, painting several of his major works during his time there

7 .

Also painted during van Gogh's voluntary confinement was this painting of which kind of tree?

A mulberry tree

An oak tree

A cypress tree

An apple tree

Van Gogh was pleased with this painting. In a letter to his sister Willemina he said "As regards mulberry trees, there are a lot here. I painted one not long ago when its bushy foliage was a magnificent yellow against a very blue sky and a white, stony, sunlit field behind"

8 .

Influenced by Japanese prints and also painted during van Gogh's time at the asylum, this is a painting of which type of flowers?

Violets

Irises

Pansies

Bluebells

Van Gogh began working on this painting during his first week at the asylum. His brother Theo submitted the piece for exhibition at the famous Salon des Independants in September of 1889

9 .

This is perhaps van Gogh's most famous painting. It is the inspiration for a song by Don Mclean in tribute to the artist. What is the painting's title?

Night Time Clouds

The Starry Night

View from Bedroom Window

Evening over Arles

Not to be confused with the earlier Starry Night Over the Rhone, The Starry Night is a more imaginative piece. It was painted whilst the artist was in the asylum and some have suggested that it may have been influenced by hallucinations which van Gogh had experienced

10 .

A symbol of new life, Almond Blossom was painted in 1890 to celebrate the birth of who?

Van Gogh's son

Van Gogh's nephew

Van Gogh's daughter

Van Gogh's niece

Van Gogh's brother Theo, wrote to him in January of that year telling him about the birth of his son, who would be named Vincent after his uncle. Van Gogh started painting Almond Blossom at once as a gift to his brother to celebrate the birth of his son. Sadly, one year later both van Gogh and Theo would be dead

Author: Graeme Haw

**Unlimited Quizzes Await You! 🚀**

Hey there, quiz champ! 🌟 You've already tackled today's free questions.
Ready for more?

🔓 Unlock UNLIMITED Quizzes and challenge yourself every day. But that's
not all...

🔥 As a Subscriber you can join our thrilling "Daily Streak" against other
quizzers. Try to win a coveted spot on our Hall of Fame Page.

Don't miss out! Join us now and keep the fun rolling. 🎉

Subscribe & Play

**Unlimited Quizzes Await You! 🚀**

Hey there, quiz champ! 🌟 You've already tackled today's free questions. Ready for more?

🔓 Unlock UNLIMITED Quizzes and challenge yourself every day. But that's not all...

🔥 As a Subscriber you can join our thrilling "Daily Streak" against other quizzers. Try to win a coveted spot on our Hall of Fame Page.

Don't miss out! Join us now and keep the fun rolling. 🎉

Subscribe & Play

Leave Feedback