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Thomas Eakins (1844-1916) studied in Paris in the 1860s. He has absorbed many art styles there. Eakins is famous with paintings of boat racers. In The Biglin Brothers Racing, he captures a sense of cinematic action. You feel the strength of the rowers, yet the surrounding scene is peaceful.

Eakins was a very versatile master of many genres. His Agnew Clinic, a painting of a surgical operation performed on a woman before the auditorium of by medical students is a probing study of human character. He examines the personalities of the medical students as carefully as the surgeons examine the body on the operating table.

Influenced by Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s back-to-Eden philosophy: “Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains. Those who think themselves the masters of others are indeed greater slaves than they”, Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) tried to return to the primitive state through art to find the “noble savage” or natural person.

Gauguin considered the life in Europe is “artificial and conventional… In order to do something new we must go back to the source, to humanity in its infancy.” Eventually, he went to Tahiti to seek the noble savage.

The concept of the noble savage, man living in harmony with nature, was popular in the 18th century. According to the concept, man shall not be corrupted by civilization. Jean-Jacques Rousseau supported the idea, though he never actually used the term. In Emile, he wrote: “Everything is good in leaving the hands of the creator of things; everything degenerates in the hands of man.”

Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902) was born in Solingen, Germany; grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts; went back to Germany for four years to study painting; and returned to the United States to paint. Bierstadt is famous with spectacular mountain scenery. He often went to treacherous and dangerous locations to made sketches and took photos of the scene. From these photos, he painted his awe-inspiring landscapes. Bierstadt once headed west with an expeditionary party in 1859 and, in the summer of 1861, took sketches of Eastern Shoshone country in the Wind River region of Wyoming.

In The Rocky Mountains, Lander’s Peak Bierstadt focuses on the natural sunlight on the scenes. Although Native Americans and animals populate the foreground and middle ground of the painting, they do not dominate on the painting - they’re simply local color and ambience. It’s the light in the painting that has personality. Bierstadt was in favor of the long, wide shot rather than intimate close-up.

When I saw Vincent Van Gogh’s painting “Sunflowers“, I was attracted by its bright colors and the flowers full of vitality. Van Gogh had painted several sizes of “Sunflowers”, and the 15 flowers are the most famous paintings. He threw his own deep feelings into his painting heart and soul.

Vincent Van Gogh, a Dutch painter. He was born in 1853 and departed in 1890. He is a representative of the Post Impressionism. Most casual art lovers see Van Gogh as a troubled, but successful artist. This is far from the actual truth of his turbulent life.

Van Gogh was born in a small town of Netherlands in 1853. His mother lost a son in 1852 and was deeply grieved. Van Gogh’s birth couldn’t appease the grief in her mother’s mind. However, mother passed on the love of the land to Van Gogh. She taught the children sketches and watercolors, she was Van Gogh’s first art teacher. Van Gogh’s childhood memories were filled with deep sorrow and depression. However, his 4-years-younger brother, Theo Van Gogh, was the only warmth and hope in Van Gogh’s life, and even death could not block the link between them.

Because of poverty, 16-year-old Vincent became a probationary staff of a gallery and then he worked as the gallery shop assistant in London and other places. It is because there were a large number of famous works of art that trained Gogh painting techniques and artistic accomplishment. At the age of 25 he was working as a missionary in Belgium mine, but later, he was forced to leave because of his sympathizing with the poor workers. From 16 years old to 26 years old, Gogh experienced emotional and mental setbacks. These impelled him to develop a sensitive, strong and twisted character.

In 1880, it was at his 27′ s after church, he determined to start painting. He would use his paintbrush to propagandize the natural beauty and dignity of workers brilliant continually. His dear brother Theo supported him in financial assistance and encouraged him in spirit.

In March 1886, Van Gogh Settled in Paris , he painted with impressionistic painters. Van Gogh was a warm person. In destitute circumstances, he welcomed the arrival of Paul Gauguin by painting “Sunflowers” and strongly hoped that Gauguin would set up a studio, where they could explore the arts. Vincent was very sensitive, when an argument on art concept broke out between Gauguin and him, he almost killed Gauguin. The most admiring friends left, Van Gogh cut off his ear in pain and painted the sad state of himself ( Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Pipe and Self Portrait with Badaged Ear )

During his 1887 to 1888’s, he painted a lot of self-portraits. Because he always suffered double torture in physical and mental, and lonely life made him have more time to examine himself. His self-portrait was a recording, either in happiness or pain. You can see the efforts to strengthen his faith in his blue eyes.

On 8 May 1889, Van Gogh received treatment in the mental hospital of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole , a little less than 20 miles ( 32 km ) from Arles . The hospital was a mile and a half out of the town and was in an area of cornfields, vineyards, and olive trees. During his stay there, the clinic and its garden became his main subject. At this time some of his work was characterized by swirls, as in one of his best-known paintings, The Starry Night. He took some short supervised walks, which gave rise to images of cypresses and olive trees. In September 1889 he painted two new versions of the Bedroom in Arles (Vincent’s Bedroom in Arles 2 and Vincent’s Bedroom in Arles 3 ) .

One of his last paintings which he completed in late July 1890 titled “Wheat Field With Crows” reflects an ambivalence of optimism and hopelessness with the dark clouds of depression slowly lifting up from the skyline. A few days after he finished this painting, Vincent Van Gogh, on July 27, 1890, killed himself with a gunshot to the chest. His brother Theo died of lung disease 6 months after the death of Vincent.

Although he only sold one painting during his life-time (The Red Vineyard), he is considered the most powerful Expressionist, and his paintings each sell for millions of dollars. Ironically, Vincent Van Gogh is deemed by society to be one of our greatest and most successful artists.