Vincent van Gogh's Complementary Color Symbolismjwr47

8 September 1888 – Red & Green in The Night Café

Having analyzed the origin of the divine biblical colors red, blue and purple1, which had beencommanded in Exodus and Chronicles concentrated on Vincent's complementary colors, whichseemed to have been defined as red & green as in the Vincent's Night Café. Wikipedia's authorsrefer as follows to Vincent's study of complementary symbols:

Describing his painting, The Night Café, to his brother Theo dated 8 September 1888,Vincent wrote: I’ve tried to express the terrible human passions with the red and thegreen. 5 The room is blood-red and dull yellow, a green billiard table in the center, 4lemon yellow lamps with an orange and green glow. Everywhere it’s a battle and anantithesis of the most different greens and reds; in the characters of the sleepingruffians, small in the empty, high 6 room, some purple and blue. The blood-red and theyellow-green of the billiard table, for example, contrast with the little bit of delicateLouis XV green of the counter, where there’s a pink bouquet. The white clothes of theowner, watching over things from a corner in this furnace, become lemon yellow, paleluminous green. 7 I’m making a drawing of it in watercolor tones to send you tomorrow,to give you an idea of it.82

1 The Hermetic Codex, Illuminated Manuscripts, The Hermetic Codex II - Bipolar Monotheism, Lamentation for Tyreand The Pancreator's Colors2 676 - Vincent van Gogh The Letters

Fig. 1: The Night Café (Public Domain) expressing the terrible human passions with the red and the green

No other painter used complementary colors so often and dramatically as Vincent vanGogh. He created his own oranges with mixtures of yellow, ochre and red, and placedthem next to slashes of sienna red and bottle green, and below a sky of turbulent blueand violet. He put an orange moon and stars in a cobalt blue sky. He wrote to his brotherTheo of "searching for oppositions of blue with orange, of red with green, of yellowwith violet, searching for broken colors and neutral colors to harmonize the brutality ofextremes, trying to make the colors intense, and not a harmony of greys."[17] 3

On the traditional color wheel developed in the 18th century (see 1708 illustration byBoutet), used by Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh and other painters, and still usedby many artists today, the primary colors were considered to be red, yellow, and blue,and the primary–secondary complementary pairs are red–green, orange–blue, andyellow–violet[2] (or yellow–purple in Boutet's color wheel).

However I had discovered a contradiction between these written red & green complementarycombinations and the practiced symbolism in Vincent's male and female antipodes. In fact Vincentmay have used red and green to express the terrible human passions, but in earlier periods he usedred & blue to symbolize the female (red) and male (blue) antipodes in a loving couple.

The Couple in The Night Café

The Couple in The Night Café is dressed in blue for the male person and in dark brown respectivelyyellowish & green for the lady.

Source: Le café de nuit (The Night Café) by Vincent van Gogh.jpeg

respectively Van Gogh: Night Cafe in Arles, The (for the water color image)

3 Source (Wikipedia): Complementary colors

2: Le café de nuit (The Night Café) byVincent van Gogh - oilpainting

3: Le café de nuit (The Night Café)(Vincent van Gogh - water color)

Portrait of the poet Eugene Boch (3 September 1888)

In the letter “Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh" (3 September 1888) Vincent claimed he“intended to express the love of two lovers by a marriage of two complementary colors, theirmingling and their opposition, the mysterious vibrations of kindred tones” (see appendix for thesource letter). This symbolism seems to refer to the painting of “the poet” with the radiance of abright yellow (light) tone against a somber deep ultramarine background.

“His line head with that keen gaze stands out in my portrait against a starry sky of deepultramarine; for clothes, a short yellow coat, a collar of unbleached linen, and spotted tie. Hegave me two sittings in one day.”

The deep ultramarine sky indeed may symbolize a halo, contrasting to the complementary yellow:

And in a picture I want to say something comforting as music is comforting. I want to paintmen and women with that something of the eternal which the halo used to symbolize, andwhich we seek to confer by the actual radiance and vibration of our coloring.

...

I am always in hope of making a discovery there, to express the love of two lovers by amarriage of two complementary colors, their mingling and their opposition, the mysteriousvibrations of kindred tones. To express the thought of a brow by the radiance of a light toneagainst a somber background.

In this case there is no lover, except for the ultramarine sky background.

4: Portrait of the poet Eugene Boch - combining ultramarine and yellow -

Courting couples in the Voyer d'Argenson Park, Asnières (spring 1887)

The following painting dated in the spring of 1887 (in Paris) depicts a couple of a woman dressed inrose accompanied by a man in blue.

The foliage of the trees reflect his study of complementary tones; the sky is featheredwith tiny strokes of the palest shades of blue, violet, and green. In a letter to his sisterWil, van Gogh compared the fundamental harmony of chromatic pairs that together"shine brilliantly" to a human couple declaring, the colors "complete each other like aman and woman.4"

At that stage the complementary colors had been defined as rose for the female and blue for themale antipodes.

4 Vincent van Gogh Paintings from Paris

Fig. 5: Courting couples in the Voyer d'Argenson Park in Asnières (detail), Vincent van Gogh (spring 1887 in Paris)

Two Lovers (Walking Couple), March 1888 (Arles)

The following sketch dated in March 1888 (in Arles) depicts a couple of a woman dressed in scarletred accompanied by a man in blue jacket, yellow hat and undefined trousers.

The following letter dated March 18th, 1888 refers to this sketch 5

At the top of this letter I’m sending you a little croquis of a study that’s preoccupyingme as to how to make something of it — sailors coming back with their sweetheartstowards the town, which projects the strange silhouette of its drawbridge against a hugeyellow sun.6

6. The fragment Walking couple (F 544 / JH 1369) is all that has survived of this study,which is reproduced in its entirety in the letter sketch The Langlois bridge with walkingcouple (F - / JH 1370). In letter 589 Van Gogh said that he had ruined the study6.

5 587 - Vincent van Gogh The Letters - Vincent van Gogh to Émile Bernard on March 18th, 188 6 The bad weather prevented my working on the spot, and I've completely ruined it by trying to finish it at home.

6: Two Lovers (Walking Couple), March 1888 (Arles)

“A sunday at Eindhoven”7 (December 1883)

In the water color painting “A sunday at Eindhoven” (5 or 6 December 1883) the painter applies red& blue to concentrate and highlight the (walking) protagonist in the scene.

I found a version of this painting in “Van Gogh” (1975) by Pierre Cabane with very dark coloredbackground. In fact the red & blue of the walking protagonist at the left side seemed to mark theonly brightly colored area of this image. The web-versions of this painting however may have beenenhanced in their coloring spectrum.

The protagonist with a bright red bundle and a light blue coat may represent a hobo8.

7 "Un dimanche à Eindhoven", aquarelle de Vincent Van Gogh8 A sunday at Eindhoven

Fig. 7: "Un dimanche à Eindhoven", aquarelle de Vincent Van Gogh

Couple Walking among Olive Trees (May 1890)9

I found a reproduction of this painting in “Van Gogh” (1967) by Rene Huyghe with an orangecolored dress for the female person, but compared to the generally yellow published web-versionsof this painting I decided to consider the antipodal symbols as yellow and blue.

9 Couple Walking among Olive Trees in a Mountainous Landscape with Crescent Moon public domain

Fig. 8: Couple Walking among OliveTrees (detail in yellow & blue, May

1890)

9: Couple in orange & blue - Walkingamong Olive Trees (May 1890) in “Van

Gogh” (1967) by Rene Huyghe

536 To Theo. Nuenen, on or about Tuesday, 20 October 188510.

Postscript section

These things that relate to complementary colors, to simultaneous contrast 28 and to the waycomplementaries neutralize each other, this question is the first and foremost. The other is — theeffect on each other of two similar colors, for example a carmine on a vermilion, a pink lilac on ablue lilac.The third question is a light blue against the same dark blue, a pink against a brown red, a lemonyellow against fawn yellow, &c. But the first question is the most important.

And if you find some book or other on color questions that is good, do be sure to send it to me, for Itoo know far from everything about it, and go on searching every day.

28. The physicist Michel Eugène Chevreul called the phenomenon that complementary colorsreinforce each other when they are placed next to each other ‘the law of the simultaneouscontrast of colors’ (la loi du contraste simultané des couleurs). He treated the subject at length inhis book De la loi du contraste simultané des couleurs (1839). Van Gogh was familiar with theconcept from Charles Blanc’s essay on Delacroix in Les artistes de mon temps – he quoted therelevant passage on color theory in letter 494 – and from Blanc’s Grammaire des arts du dessin(see n. 7 above).

Félix Bracquemond also calls it ‘simultaneous contrast’ in Du dessin et de la couleur (seeBracquemond 1885, pp. 241-245). In September 1885 Van Gogh said he had read this book‘more than once’; he reread it in February 1886. See letters 532 and 564.

10 536 - To Theo van Gogh. Nuenen, on or about Tuesday, 20 October 1885.

Chronological flow of Vincent's color and color symbolism studies

I decided to put these details in a table-form to study Vincent's development of symbolism.

Initially Vincent van Gogh may have used red & blue to highlight the protagonist in "Un dimancheà Eindhoven" (aquarelle) (1883).

In the spring of 1887 up to march 1888 he seemed to have followed the biblical complementarycodes red & blue as documented in Exodus 25:411 and Chronicles 2:712.

In September 1888 Vincent documented his aim to express the love of two lovers by a marriage oftwo complementary colors respectively light / somber. In the Portrait of the poet Eugene Boch thecomplementary antipodal symbols are a yellow clothing against an ultramarine background.

The very same month September 1888 Vincent claimed to have used red & green in the interior ofThe Night Café to symbolize the terrible human passions.

In 1890 Vincent used the antipodal symbols yellow and blue to symbolize woman, erespectivelyman in a Couple Walking among Olive Trees.

## Painting / letter / sketch Dated Female color code

Male color code

1 "Un dimanche à Eindhoven", aquarelle de Vincent Van Gogh

(December 1883) Highlighting a protagonist by applying red & blue

2 (494) - Letter t o Theo. Nuenen, on or about Saturday, 18 April 1885

(18 April 1885) Studying complementary colors I

3 536 - To Theo van Gogh. Nuenen, on or about Tuesday, 20 October 1885.

(20 October 1885) Studying complementary colors II

4 Courting couples in the Voyer d'Argenson Park in Asnières (Paris)

spring 1887 Rose Blue

5 Two Lovers (Walking Couple) - (Arles) March 1888 Red Blue

6 Portrait of the poet Eugene Boch Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh"

(3 September 1888) To express the love of two lovers by a marriage of twocomplementary colors respectively light / somber.

7 The Night Café(676 - Vincent van Gogh The Letters)

(8 September 1888) I sought to express with redand green the terrible human passions.

8 Couple Walking among Olive Trees(Saint-Remy, May 1890)

May 1890 Yellow13 Blue

Table 1: Chronological flow of Vincent van Gogh's study of colors & symbolism

11 Exodus 25:4: blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, goats' hair, Purple (54 Occurrences)12 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and

crimson, and blue 2 Chronicles 2:7 13 Orange in “Van Gogh” (1967) by Rene Huyghe

Sources for Couples' symbolism

Many of Van Gogh’s ideas about love and women prove to have been inspired by theliterature he read: above all by the books L’amour (1858) and La femme (1860). He went sofar as to describe these didactic treatises on the ideal relationship between man and woman –they should become two-in-one and together bring about something real – as his gospel.Michelet argues that a woman can only really be happy within marriage and under theguidance of the right man. He sets out the tasks and duties of each party and explains howthe security and support provided by the husband, combined with the devotion and purity ofthe wife, can lead to a ‘divine unity’. Michelet advocated a vigorous and active love. Menwho were not prepared to protect and rescue a woman should be ashamed of themselves.Van Gogh had a copy of L’Amour. Paris (Hachette) 1861 with his name ‘Vincent’ inscribedat the front. See V.W. van Gogh, Les sources d’inspiration de Vincent van Gogh. Exhib. cat.Paris (Institut Néerlandais). Paris 1972, p. 22 (cat. no. 56).14

From a Letter dated 21 March 1883.

Two good people — man and woman united — wanting and intending the same, steeped in thesame earnestness, what couldn’t they achieve! I’ve thought about that often. For by uniting, theforce for good is not only doubled but doubled many times — as if raised to a higher power, to putit in mathematical terms.2 15

From a Letter dated 11 July 1883.

My aim is to do a drawing that not exactly everyone will understand, the figure expressed in itsessence in simplified form, with deliberate disregard of those details that aren’t part of the truecharacter and are merely accidental. Thus it shouldn’t, for example, be the portrait of Pa but ratherthe type of a poor village pastor going to visit a sick person. The same with the couple arm in armby the beech hedge — the type of a man and woman who have grown old together and in whomlove and loyalty have remained, rather than portraits of Pa and Ma, although I hope they’ll pose forit. But they must know that it’s serious, which they might not see for themselves if the likeness isn’texact. 16

The androgynous symbolism in Gauguin's sculptures17

In his paintings Gauguin used the Idol „Das Idol“ (in “Rave te Hiti Aamu”) for which M.Bodelsen18 discovered the origin of the name Seraphita had been traced in a novel of Balzac. Thesymbolism of this idol represents an androgynous creature in which male and female elements arejoined in harmony. Oviri is the master of death, but also generating Seraphitus (male) and Seraphita(female). In a letter to his friend Gauguin had ordered to decorate his grave with an Oviri-sculpture19.

14 From a note to To Willem and Caroline van Stockum-Haanebeek. London, between about Thursday, 16 October and Friday, 31 October 1873.

15 To Theo van Gogh. The Hague, on or about Wednesday, 21 March 1883.16 To Theo van Gogh, The Hague, on or about Wednesday, 11 July 1883.17 Source: Paul Gauguin, Geheimnisvolle Verwandtschaften von Assja Kantor-Gukowskaja, Anna Barskaja, Marina

Bessonowa 18 M. Bodelsen: Gauguin's Ceramics (1964, S. 149).19 The Pursuit of Spiritual Wisdom: The Thought and Art of Vincent Van Gogh and Gauguin

The symbol of the universe

I already had searched for some explanation for the biblical color symbols and found themost probable definition “symbol of the universe” at Josephus.

From his biblical studies Vincent van Gogh may have known the 25 quotations of red, blue andpurple, but he probably did not have the opportunity to study Josephus or any of the historicalalternative sources except the bible.

In Critique of Modern Art20 Frederick Solomon also quotes Josephus (37 – c. 100AD), whoexplained the ancient biblical color symbols of the temple at Jerusalem as a symbol of the universein his work: The Wars Of The Jews21, Book V - Chapter 5. Section 4 in: “A Description Of TheTemple”:

But then this house, as it was divided into two parts, the inner part was lower than the appearance ofthe outer, and had golden doors of fifty-five cubits altitude, and sixteen in breadth; but before thesedoors there was a veil of equal largeness with the doors. It was a Babylonian curtain, embroideredwith blue, and fine linen, and scarlet, and purple, and of a contexture that was truly wonderful.Nor was this mixture of colors without its mystical interpretation, but was a kind of image of theuniverse; for by the scarlet there seemed to be enigmatically signified fire, by the fine white (?)flax the earth, by the blue the air, and by the purple the sea; two of them having their colors thefoundation of this resemblance; but the fine flax and the purple have their own origin for thatfoundation, the earth producing the one, and the sea the other. This curtain had also embroideredupon it all that was mystical in the heavens, excepting that of the [twelve] signs, representing livingcreatures.

Another reference is given in the description of Moses' Tabernacle in the Wilderness, for which theBible prescribes the use of four elementary colors: blue, scarlet, purple and white. HoweverJosephus does not explain these colors yet, although these are the same colors which have beendocumented for the temple:

HEREUPON the Israelites rejoiced at what they had seen and heard of their conductor, andwere not wanting in diligence according to their ability; for they brought silver, and gold,and brass, and of the best sorts of wood, and such as would not at all decay by putrefaction;camels' hair also, and sheep-skins, some of them dyed of a blue color, and some of a scarlet;some brought the flower for the purple color, and others for white, with wool dyed by theflowers aforementioned; and fine linen and precious stones, which those that use costlyornaments set in ouches of gold; they brought also a great quantity of spices; for of thesematerials did Moses build the tabernacle, which did not at all differ from a movable andambulatory temple.

These four basic color symbols red, blue, purple and white have been found in many templedecorations22, tomb decorations, medieval bible illustration23, sacred paintings, religious garments,as well as in coat of arms and flags. In the biblical text for Lamentation for Tyre the trading, thetraders and the customers for these elementary symbolic dyes has been described in details.

The four colors represented the four elements air, fire, sea and earth. Although their symbolismmay have been extended and altered since Josephus, the color symbolism generally formed thefundamental base for sacred paintings.

20 Critique of Modern Art by Frederick Solomon (1970)21 The History Of The Destruction Of Jerusalem 22 Red and Blue in Architecture and Artwork23 Illuminated Manuscripts

Except for translation errors24 yellow and green had never been sacred biblical colors. Yellow hadbeen defined as a medieval symbol for treason25.

Of course yellow and green had to be seen as non-divine symbols. Especially yellow is well-knownto symbolize bad reputations.

24 Luther's error (yellow instead of blue) in his Bible translations for Exodus 25:425 Yellow for Judas

Equivalent Color Coding in my own Paintings

In my own paintings a few examples have been following the same idea of antipodal elementsVincent formulated in his letters. However I mostly restricted the antipodes to blue (for maleelements) and red (for female elements), found in the Picasa album Years Full of Colors 26:

26 Androgynous Couple (disrupted, after Picasso), The Love Letter (2001), The Love Letter & Child (2001) and Metamorphosenzyklus (2003) – all listed in the Picasa album Years Full of Colors

10: Androgynous Couple(separated, after Picasso)

11: The Love Letter(2001)

12: Metamorphosis Cycle (detail, 2003).

Four Colors in Literature - Musil's “Man without qualities”

I also remember the strange confusion in defining 3- respectively 4-sectors color wheels.

In “Man without qualities” there is a quotation of antipodal color symbolism, which I tried todecipher.

In chapter 25, The Siamese Twins Musil must have considered yellow and blue as thecomplementary color pairs, as well as red and green, whereas he considered the mixture ofantipodes violet or purple:

“We might dress ourselves in an opposite pattern, Agathe delightedly responded. Yellowone of us, and the other blue, or red opposite to green. And our hair might be coloredviolet or purple27”.

The quotation does not meet Goethe's nor Newton's theory. However searching the web I identifiedthe four color system of „Ewald Hering“, explaining Musil's expression. The 4 color system alsohas been applied to setup the Natural Color System (NCS).

Summary

In the overview Vincent intuitively followed the antipodal color code of ancient philosophy, whichalso had been unveiled by numerous other artists in painting, sculptures or literature.

In a letter to his sister Wil, van Gogh compared the fundamental harmony of chromatic pairs thattogether "shine brilliantly" to a human couple declaring, the colors "complete each other like a manand woman.28".

Vincent's samples of pairs illustrate his expressive idea of chromatic pairs. The finest samples of red& blue color symbolism may be found in Courting couples in the Voyer d'Argenson Park inAsnières (1887, Paris), Two Lovers (Walking Couple) – (1888, Arles) and Couple Walking amongOlive Trees (Saint-Remy, May 1890).

27 Own translation from German to English - Page 904-905 in Rowohlt's Gesammelte Werke von Robert Musil (1978)- Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften – Teil 3 – Ins tausendjährige Reich (chapter 25, The Siamese Twins).

Original: »Wir können uns ja auch gerade entgegengesetzt kleiden« entgegnete Agathe belustigt. »Gelb der eine, wenn der andere blau ist, oder rot neben grün, und das Haar können wir violett oder purpurn färben, und ich mache mir einen Buckel und du dir einen Bauch: und trotzdem sind wir Zwillinge!« (904-905) Kapitel 25 - Projekt Gutenberg-DE - SPIEGEL ONLINE

28 Vincent van Gogh Paintings from Paris

Appendix I – 494 To Theo. Nuenen, on or about Saturday, 18 April 188529

The ancients accepted only three primary colors, yellow, red and blue, and modern painters don’t accept any others. These three colors, in fact, are the only ones that can’t be broken down and are irreducible.

The whole world knows that the sun’s rays break down into a series of seven colors, which Newton called primary: violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and red; but it’s clear that the name ‘primary’ wouldn’t fit three of these colors, which are composite, since orange is made with red andyellow — green with yellow and blue — violet with blue and red. As for indigo, it can’t be counted among the primary colors, either, since it’s no more than a variety of blue.

We must therefore acknowledge with Antiquity that in nature there are only three truly elementary colors, which, by being mixed two by two, create three other composite colors, called binaries: orange, green and violet.

These rudiments, developed by modern scholars, have led to the notion of certain laws, which form a luminous theory of colors — a theory that E. Delacroix mastered scientifically and thoroughly, after having instinctively known it. 2v:4 (See Grammaire des arts du dessin, 3rd ed., Renouard).

If one combines two of the primary colors — yellow and red, for example, in order to create a binary color, orange, this binary color will attain its maximum brilliance when one places it close to the third primary color, not used in the mixture.

Similarly, if one combines red and blue to produce violet — that binary color — the violet will be heightened by the immediate proximity of yellow. Lastly, if one combines yellow and blue to form green, this green will be heightened by the immediate proximity of red.

Each of the three primary colors is rightly called Complementary in relation to the binary color that corresponds with it. Thus blue is the complementary of orange, yellow is the complementary of violet, and red the complementary of green.

Vice versa, each of the composite colors is the complementary of the primary color not used in the mixture. This reciprocal heightening is what’s called the law of simultaneous contrast. 2v:5

If the complementary colors are taken at equal value, that’s to say, at the same degree of brightness and light, their juxtaposition will raise both the one and the other to an intensity so violent that human eyes will scarcely be able to bear to look at it.

And by a singular phenomenon, THESE SAME COLORS, WHICH ARE HEIGHTENED BY BEING JUXTAPOSED, WILL DESTROY ONE ANOTHER BY BEING MIXED. Thus — when one mixes together blue and orange in equal quantities, the orange being no more orange than the blue is blue — the mixing destroys the two tones and the result is an absolutely colorless grey.

But — if one mixes together two complementaries in unequal proportions, they only partially destroy one another, and you’ll have A BROKEN TONE — which will be a variety of grey. That being so, new contrasts will emerge from the juxtaposition of two complementaries, one of which ispure and the other broken. The contest being unequal, one of these two colors triumphs, and the intensity of the dominant one doesn’t prevent there being harmony between the two. 2r:6

Because if one now brings together similar colors in the pure state, but with differing degrees of energy, for example, dark blue and light blue, one will obtain a different effect, in which there will be a contrast by virtue of the difference in intensity, and harmony by virtue of the similarity.

Lastly, if two similar colors are juxtaposed, one in the pure state, the other broken — for example, pure blue with grey blue, the result will be another sort of contrast which will be tempered by the analogy between them.

29 (494) Letter t o Theo. Nuenen, on or about Saturday, 18 April 1885

One can thus see that there exist several ways, different from each other, but equally infallible, of strengthening, supporting, attenuating or neutralizing the effect of a color, and they involve workingon what’s next to it — by touching what isn’t the color itself.

In order to heighten and harmonize his colors, he uses the contrast between complementaries and agreement between analogues all together, in other words, the repetition of a vivid tone by the same broken tone.10

Appendix II - Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh30

Arles, 3 September 1888

My dear Theo,

I spent yesterday with the Belgian, who also has a sister among the “vingtistes.” The weather was not fine, but a very good day for talking; we went for a walk and anyway saw some very fine things at the bullfight and outside the town. We talked more seriously about the plan, that if I keep a place in the south, he ought to set up a sort of post among the collieries. Then Gauguin and I and he, if theimportance of a picture made it worth the journey, could change places - and so be sometimes in thenorth, but in familiar country with a friend in it, and sometimes in the south.

You will soon see him, this young man with the look of Dante, because he is going to Paris, and if you put him up - if the room is free - you will be doing him a good turn; he is very distinguished in appearance, and will become so, I think, in his painting.

He likes Delacroix, and we talked a lot about Delacroix yesterday. He even knew the violent study for the “Bark of Christ.”

Well, thanks to him I have at last a first sketch of that picture which I have dreamt of for so long - the poet. He posed for me. His line head with that keen gaze stands out in my portrait against a starry sky of deep ultramarine; for clothes, a short yellow coat, a collar of unbleached linen, and spotted tie. He gave me two sittings in one day.

Yesterday I had a letter from our sister, who has seen a great deal. Ah, if she could marry an artist it would not be so bad. Well, we must go on inducing her to develop her personality rather than her artistic abilities.

I have finished L'Immortel by Daudet. I rather like the saying of the sculptor Védrine, that to achieve fame is something like ramming the lighted end of your cigar into your mouth when you are smoking. But I certainly like L'Immortel less, far less than Tartarin.

You know, it seems to me that L'Immortel is not so fine in color as Tartarin, because it reminds me with its mass of true and subtle observations of the dreary pictures of Jean Bérend which are so dry and cold. Now Tartarin is really great, with the greatness of a masterpiece, just like Candide.

I do strongly ask you to keep my studies of this place as open to the air as possible, because they arenot yet thoroughly dry. If they remain shut up or in the dark the colors will get devalued. So the portrait of “The Young Girl,” “The Harvest”(a wide landscape with the ruin in the background and the line of the Alpilles), the little “Seascape,” the “Garden” with the weeping tree and clumps of conifers, if you could put these on stretchers it would be well. I am rather keen on those. You will easily see by the drawing of the little seascape that it is the most thought out.

I am having two oak frames made for my new peasant's head and for my Poet study. Oh, my dear boy, sometimes I know so well what I want. I can very well do without God both in my life and in my painting, but I cannot, ill as I am, do without something which is greater than I, which is my life- the power to create.

And if, defrauded of the power to create physically, a man tries to create thoughts in place of children, he is still very much part of humanity.

And in a picture I want to say something comforting as music is comforting. I want to paint men and women with that something of the eternal which the halo used to symbolize, and which we seekto confer by the actual radiance and vibration of our colorings.

30 Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh : 3 September 1888

Portraiture so understood does not become like an Ary Scheffer, just because there is a blue sky behind as in the “St. Augustine.” For Ary Scheffer is so little of a colorist.

But it would be more in harmony with what Eug. Delacroix attempted and brought off in his “Tasso in Prison,” and many other pictures, representing a real man. Ah! portraiture, portraiture with the thought, the soul of the model in it, that is what I think must come.

The Belgian and I talked a lot yesterday about the advantages and disadvantages of this place. We quite agree regarding both. And on the great advantage it would be to us if we could move now North, now South.

He is going to stay with McKnight again so as to live more cheaply. That, however, has I think one disadvantage, because living with a slacker makes one slack.

I think you would enjoy meeting him, he is still young. I think he will ask your advice about buyingJapanese prints and Daumier lithographs. As to these - the Daumiers - it would be well to get some more of them, because later there will be none to be got.

The Belgian was saying that he paid 80 francs for board and lodging with McKnight. So what a difference there is in living together, since I have to pay 45 a month for nothing but lodging. And so I always come back to the same reckoning, that with Gauguin I should not spend more than I do alone, and be no worse off. But we must consider that they were very badly housed, not for sleeping, but for the possibility of work at home.

So I am always between two currents of thought, first the material difficulties, turning round and round to make a living; and second, the study of color. I am always in hope of making a discovery there, to express the love of two lovers by a marriage of two complementary colors, their mingling and their opposition, the mysterious vibrations of kindred tones. To express the thought of a brow by the radiance of a light tone against a sombre background.

To express hope by some star, the eagerness of a soul by a sunset radiance. Certainly there is nothing in that of trompe d'oeil realism, but isn't it something that actually exists?

Good-by for the present. I will tell you another time when the Belgian may be leaving,, because I shall see him again tomorrow.

With a handshake,

Ever yours, Vincent

The Belgian says that his people at home have a de Groux, the study for the “Benedicité” in the Brussels Museum.

The portrait of the Belgian is something like the portrait of Reid which you have, in execution.

At this time, Vincent was 35 year old

Source:Vincent van Gogh. Letter to Theo van Gogh. Written 3 September 1888 inArles. Translated by Mrs. Johanna van Gogh-Bonger, edited by Robert Harrison, number 531.URL: http://webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/18/531.htm.

This letter may be freely used, in accordance with the terms of WebExhibits online museum

Appendix III – The sources for color symbolism

(Extracted from Scribd): The Color Symbolism of Philosophers by jwr47

September 2012 I was lucky to discover some sources for color symbolism. First of all I foundFrederick Solomon's Critique of Modern Art31 in which the background of ancient symbolism isexplained. Only a few samples will be listed here from my analysis: The Symbolism of the ColorsPurple, White, Red (Uploaded 09/05/12).

Solomon refers to some interesting historical examples including:

• The symbolic value of colors, its message – for every symbol has a message – can only beunderstood if its meaning is known. The Byzantine mosaics of Ravenna for instance cannotbe understood unless one knows, that is, he as heard and learned what they stand for. Evenfor the uninitiated such art may be beautiful and full of atmosphere, indeed complete as toits artistic value; but only if one knows that blue means charity and red means love will hebe able to read the paintings and understand their message (page 211)

• The symbols were put there to be understood, and that was not even difficult as theirmeaning was handed down from generation to generation (page 211).

• Colors in Oriental Carpets have a definite meaning only for the initiate (page 217)

Frederick Solomon also quotes Josephus (37 – c. 100AD), who explained the ancient biblical colorsymbols of the temple at Jerusalem in his work: The Wars Of The Jews32, Book V - Chapter 5.Section 4 in: “A Description Of The Temple”:

Section 4. As to the holy house itself, which was placed in the midst [of the inmostcourt], that most sacred part of the temple, it was ascended to by twelve steps; and infront its height and its breadth were equal, and each a hundred cubits, though it wasbehind forty cubits narrower; for on its front it had what may be styled shoulders oneach side, that passed twenty cubits further. Its first gate was seventy cubits high, andtwenty-five cubits broad; but this gate had no doors; for it represented the universalvisibility of heaven, and that it cannot be excluded from any place. Its front was coveredwith gold all over, and through it the first part of the house, that was more inward, didall of it appear; which, as it was very large, so did all the parts about the more inwardgate appear to shine to those that saw them; but then, as the entire house was dividedinto two parts within, it was only the first part of it that was open to our view. Its heightextended all along to ninety cubits in height, and its length was fifty cubits, and itsbreadth twenty. But that gate which was at this end of the first part of the house was, aswe have already observed, all over covered with gold, as was its whole wall about it; ithad also golden vines above it, from which clusters of grapes hung as tall as a man'sheight. But then this house, as it was divided into two parts, the inner part was lowerthan the appearance of the outer, and had golden doors of fifty-five cubits altitude, andsixteen in breadth; but before these doors there was a veil of equal largeness with thedoors. It was a Babylonian curtain, embroidered with blue, and fine linen, and scarlet,and purple, and of a contexture that was truly wonderful. Nor was this mixture ofcolors without its mystical interpretation, but was a kind of image of the universe; forby the scarlet there seemed to be enigmatically signified fire, by the fine flax the earth,by the blue the air, and by the purple the sea; two of them having their colors thefoundation of this resemblance; but the fine flax and the purple have their own originfor that foundation, the earth producing the one, and the sea the other. This curtain had

31 Critique of Modern Art by Frederick Solomon (1970)32 The History Of The Destruction Of Jerusalem

also embroidered upon it all that was mystical in the heavens, excepting that of the[twelve] signs, representing living creatures.

Having found these valuable interpretations I searched for the sources and found Josephus' works inthe Web.

From Flavius Josephus' translations by William Whiston I searched for keywords and found thefollowing contemporary excerpt of color symbolism in Antiquities of the Jews:

Book III: Moses' Tabernacle in the Wilderness33

A reference is given in the description of Moses' Tabernacle in the Wilderness, for which the Bibleprescribes the use of four elementary colors: blue, scarlet, purple and white. However Josephusdoes not explain these colors yet, although these are the same colors which have been documentedfor the temple:

HEREUPON the Israelites rejoiced at what they had seen and heard of their conductor, andwere not wanting in diligence according to their ability; for they brought silver, and gold,and brass, and of the best sorts of wood, and such as would not at all decay by putrefaction;camels' hair also, and sheep-skins, some of them dyed of a blue color, and some of a scarlet;some brought the flower for the purple color, and others for white, with wool dyed by theflowers aforementioned; and fine linen and precious stones, which those that use costlyornaments set in ouches of gold; they brought also a great quantity of spices; for of thesematerials did Moses build the tabernacle, which did not at all differ from a movable andambulatory temple.

Basically the color scheme is fourfold and includes white, which often is referred to as fine linen.The description notes the absence of the figures of animals

Now on each side of the gates there stood three pillars, which were inserted into the concavebases of the gates, and were suited to them; and round them was drawn a curtain of finelinen; but to the gates themselves, which were twenty cubits in extent, and five in height, thecurtain was composed of purple, and scarlet, and blue, and fine linen, and embroidered withmany and divers sorts of figures, excepting the figures of animals.

...

But at the front, where the entrance was made, they placed pillars of gold, that stood onbases of brass, in number seven; but then they spread over the tabernacle veils of fine linenand purple, and blue, and scarlet colors, embroidered.

...

It (the priests' vestment) is embroidered with flowers of scarlet, and purple, and blue, andfine twined linen, but the warp was nothing but fine linen.

33 Antiquities Of The Jews– Book III, Chapter 6 and 7

Contents8 September 1888 – Red & Green in The Night Café.....................................................................1The Couple in The Night Café.........................................................................................................2Portrait of the poet Eugene Boch (3 September 1888)....................................................................3Courting couples in the Voyer d'Argenson Park, Asnières (spring 1887) .......................................4Two Lovers (Walking Couple), March 1888 (Arles).......................................................................5“A sunday at Eindhoven” (December 1883)....................................................................................6Couple Walking among Olive Trees (May 1890)............................................................................7536 To Theo. Nuenen, on or about Tuesday, 20 October 1885........................................................8

Postscript section.........................................................................................................................8Chronological flow of Vincent's color and color symbolism studies..............................................9Sources for Couples' symbolism....................................................................................................10

From a Letter dated 21 March 1883..........................................................................................10From a Letter dated 11 July 1883..............................................................................................10

The androgynous symbolism in Gauguin's sculptures...................................................................10The symbol of the universe............................................................................................................11Equivalent Color Coding in my own Paintings.............................................................................13Four Colors in Literature - Musil's “Man without qualities”.........................................................14Summary........................................................................................................................................14Appendix I – 494 To Theo. Nuenen, on or about Saturday, 18 April 1885...................................15Appendix II - Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh..................................................17Appendix III – The sources for color symbolism .........................................................................19

Book III: Moses' Tabernacle in the Wilderness.........................................................................20