Vincent, the Boy

Vincent was the eldest of six children of a Protestant pastor who was born and reared in a small

village in the Brabant region of the southern Netherlands. He was a quiet, self-contained youth, spending his free time wandering the countryside to observe nature.

This wonderful picture of Vincent was taken when he was 13.  He had tousled hair, ruddy complexion and the broad shoulders of a country youth, but these features were dominated by an arresting, melancholy gaze.  Shy and withdrawn at boarding school, he was more playful during holidays at home.  He teased his siblings,  invented games in the wheat fields and pine forests for them.

From childhood, he had made little sketches of ferns, flowers and things around his home.  He occasionally illustrated his letters with rough drawings.  Art was a respected occupation in his family.

Vincent was the eldest child, but he was not the first.  One year, to the day, his mother delivered another child, also a boy, and also named Vincent Willem van Gogh.  He was stillborn.  His grave was near the church door where Vincent would have walked by every Sunday on his way to church.  There is a statement in the van Gogh family papers that the name of his predecessor was mentioned often in Vincent’s presence.

The World of Van Gogh, Time Life Library p.10 & 11