The Bedroom free essay sample

The Bedroom by Vincent Van Gogh Although viewing a painting by definition, includes the process of visual perception, it is not limited to the eye of the beholder. I have chosen to look at Van Goghs 1888 oil on canvas painting, The Bedroom. What one sees in any image is colored by a plethora of factors that inform the viewer- consciously and unconsciously. Thus, Platos argument about the objectivety of art, its quantifiable ability to be Judged is based on a flimsy, static version of human beings. But, it is equally strange to pretend that an image is merely a subjective xperience, as though the context, history, and intention were not part of the process. As Berger notes in his essay, Ways of Seeing, [w]hen an image is presented as a work of art, the way people look at it is affected by a whole series of learned assumptions about art. We will write a custom essay sample on The Bedroom or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Assumptions concerning: Beauty, Truth, Genius, Civilization, Even with this in mind, or maybe, because of it, we Form, Status, Tast, etc. nevertheless invariably find some images more to our liking then others. Berger, for example admits that Caravaggids, The Calling of St. Matthew is his favorite painting. As I have looked at many images for this essay, I have been virtually called to Van Goghs, The Bedroom. There is so much about life that begins and ends in a bedroom. Most of us probably began our life in a bedroom. The bedroom is a place of deep intimacy, it is the place of needed rest, we begin and end most days in our bedroom. It is our home within our home. One-third of our lives are spent in the bedroom. Without even the slightest amount of sexuality, Van Goghs, The Bedroom seduces me and I become captive to its call. Berger says it like this, [w]hat is this seduction he writes of? It is nothing less than the painting working upon us. Van Gogh painted, The Bedroom three times; two times after the first painting was damaged. The paintings are almost identical with slight changes in tone and color. The first, my favorite, is housed in the Van Gogh Museam in Amsterdam. However, more significantly, the first painting was done in September 18881 and the following two were painted in September or October of 1889. Van Gogh, took his own life on July 29, 1890. And so, there is a context to this painting that includes the fact that he painted it two more times and that the original was done less than two years before his death. According to Art Historian, Debra Mancoff, Wan Gogh himself said that his approch in The Bedroom, was simple, intended to give weight and gravity to the subject while evoking the sense of restful sleep. (cf. Van Gogh Gallery). Sleep, the often used metaphor for death is obvioulsy a major theme in Van Goghs, The Bedroom. Berger observes that, [E]very image embodies a way of seeing. The Bedroom By annwelzig