I have not studied art or art history. I do not have God-given artistic talent. However, art moves me. During difficult times, I like to wander through art museums. Art museums remind me of the great beauty and talent that God gives to us. The love that God has for us, which is demonstrated in so many different ways, is truly beyond my understanding.
One of my favorite artists is Vincent Van Gogh. He was a prolific artist, known for his energy and movement, the broad brush strokes and bold colors he used. His work is easily recognizable. In about 10 years, he created over 800 oil paintings and over 1,000 drawings and sketches. Most were produced the last two years of his life. He was not a success in his lifetime. Sadly, he lived and died in poverty with progressive mental illness and died by his own hand. What would he have given us if he had one more year of life?
As I contemplate his paintings I wonder, did Van Gogh see the world differently than we do? Did his mental illness cause him to see and feel more movement in the world? Did his illness show him different colors than we see? Or did he see the world the same way we do and just have an extraordinary imagination? How did his tortured mind produce such beauty? He painted 150 paintings in a mental hospital, near the end of his life. The remarkable Roses shown above, was painted in the asylum. As he descended further into mental illness, he produced some of his best known paintings. How is that possible? When I study the energy in his brush strokes, time stands still for me and I feel a great calm. I can lose an hour staring at either of the paintings shown above. I am thankful for the peace his beautiful works bring to me.
I share Van Gogh with you because there is still so much beauty and God-given talent in the world, even with COVID-19 looming over us. We've lost countless events, important moments, and the very hardest—people we love. If Van Gogh produced 150 gorgeous paintings in a mental hospital, we can make it through the pandemic. Brilliant scientific minds all over the world are working on vaccines. They are not working on just one vaccine but on multiple vaccines. They will find and produce a vaccine in half the time. Think about what would happen if all of these brilliant minds and resources took on cancer next.
In times of trouble, I know Jesus is with us, holding us, calming us, protecting us. I feel him now, do you? Vincent Van Gogh said "To believe in God for me is to feel there is a God, not a dead one or a stuffed one, but a living one, who with irresistible force urges us towards more loving." With the great weight of his mental illness, Vincent Van Gogh felt God urge us towards more loving. I hope you feel it too. I do.
I send each of you love and two beautiful Van Gogh paintings to contemplate. You can find these two paintings at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Try the National Gallery of Art's virtual tours by following the link
HERE
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Christa Hyland
