What is said of our work
Vincent van Gogh to Anthon van Rappard, from The Hague, 1 November 1882
Which induces me to repeat my congratulations for your having been refused by Arti. If you made a great hit under the present circumstances, I should feel less respect and sympathy for you than I do now. I certainly see very clearly that you and I will undoubtedly produce much better work than we do now, and that our present work is not bad. Our attitude toward ourselves must remain stern, and we must be energetic, but there isn't a single reason why we should let ourselves be discouraged or put out by what is said of our work by people who believe they know a better style than the one we have adopted, namely drawing, or trying to draw, what strikes us in domestic life, in the street, or in a hospital, etc. If you knew, for instance, what De Groux has suffered from criticism and ill will, it would stagger you.
Letter R17
Translation courtesy of Robert Harrison.
Back to The Way of Vincent: Making art no matter what
Which induces me to repeat my congratulations for your having been refused by Arti. If you made a great hit under the present circumstances, I should feel less respect and sympathy for you than I do now. I certainly see very clearly that you and I will undoubtedly produce much better work than we do now, and that our present work is not bad. Our attitude toward ourselves must remain stern, and we must be energetic, but there isn't a single reason why we should let ourselves be discouraged or put out by what is said of our work by people who believe they know a better style than the one we have adopted, namely drawing, or trying to draw, what strikes us in domestic life, in the street, or in a hospital, etc. If you knew, for instance, what De Groux has suffered from criticism and ill will, it would stagger you.
Letter R17
Translation courtesy of Robert Harrison.
Back to The Way of Vincent: Making art no matter what
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