Saturday, February 10, 2007

Nothing dies entirely

Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh, from The Hague, 11 February 1883

You spoke of disenchantment; no, no, it is true there is a withering and budding in love as in nature, but nothing dies entirely. It is true there is an ebb and flow, but the sea remains the sea. And in love, either for a woman or for art, there are times of exhaustion and impotence, but there is no permanent disenchantment.

I consider love as well as friendship not just a feeling but also a positive action, and as such it requires doing things and exerting oneself, and exhaustion and impotence are the consequences.

A sincere and true love is a blessing, I think, though that doesn't prevent occasional hard times.

Letter 266
Translation courtesy of Robert Harrison.
Back to The Way of Vincent: Making art no matter what

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