Color Theory

Vincent Van Gogh began painting by emphasizing peasants and hardships. These paintings were very dark and depressing. Van Gogh began studying color theory and Peter Paul Rubens. During this time he became friends with an artist named Paul Gauguin and studying under Monet. All of these influences drastically changed his palette. Review the two photos on the left and notice the change in his work.

Van Gogh became obsessed with the power of color and the emotions it could evoke in the viewer. Also in how the color could be used as symbols in the paintings.

Through these changes, he also developed a style of thick swirling brushstrokes called impasto painting.

What color scheme is used in Van Gogh's bedroom painting to the left?

What are the feelings conveyed in each of the two paintings?

What element of art is created in Van Gogh's paintings with his impasto style?