“The way
to know life is to love many things.” ~ Van Gogh
I was an Art History
major in college, and Van Gogh has always been one of my favorite painters.
When I chose art posters for my freshman dorm room (no rock stars for me) I
included one of Vincent’s olive groves. I now have a wonderful old, gnarled
olive tree in my backyard that reminds me of that painting every time I go
outside.
Take a look. Can you see
the essence of my olive tree in this picture Van Gogh painted after committing
himself to an asylum?
“The way
to know life is to love many things.”
I had never read this
quote before, but it sums up what I love about his work. There is nothing pale,
passive, or lukewarm about a Van Gogh painting. He clearly loved his subjects
as much as he loved the psychological and physical act of painting. His passion
is evident in every color, every brushstroke. The viewer cannot observe Van
Gogh from an emotional distance. And isn’t that what we seek to do as writers—create
a compelling and immediate story that sucks readers in from the first words?
So what can we as fellow
artists take from this quote? We may not be painters, but we need Van Gogh’s
passion in our work. In order to write well we need to know life. We need to
love many things.
We need to love the
world around us with all its sights, sounds, and smells in order to create
vivid settings that will resonate with our readers and draw them into our
stories. We need to love people as a whole. We need to find human beings fascinating
to give our characters individuality and depth. We need to love the strength of
the human spirit.
Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com
http://alisonhenderson.blogspot.com
