Affiches Raising of Lazarus after Rembrandt by Van Gogh

The Raising of Lazarus (after Rembrandt) by Vincent Van Gogh, oil on canvas 1890, is a painting from the New Testament story of the man Lazarus being resurrected from the dead in his tomb, copied from a painting by Rembrandt. Van Gogh translates Rembrandt’s Baroque style of dark chiaroscuro into his own Post-Impressionist manner, contrasting flattened areas of warm yellows with strokes of cool blue-greys. Van Gogh also simplified the composition to include only the figures of the risen Lazarus in his death shroud, with the figures of two women exclaiming over the miraculous event. In the background, the artist has painted a blazing yellow sun illuminating a brilliant yellow sky in thick, impasto oil colors. Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890) was a Dutch painter of the Post-Impressionist movement known for bold, expressive drawing, swirling brushstrokes and bold, heightened colors. In early adulthood Van Gogh worked as an art dealer, teacher and pastor before taking up the full time study of drawing and painting in his late twenties. Influenced by Rembrandt, the 19th century Realists and Barbizon school, Van Gogh's early paintings featured studies of workers and peasants in somber earth tones. Moving to France in 1886, Van Gogh met with the startling innovations of the Impressionist painters and began to apply their approach to color and subject matter, which continued into the mature style for which the artist is most renowned. Van Gogh produced many hundreds of drawings and paintings including portraits, landscapes, still life and flower paintings, and numerous self-portraits that became a dominating influence on the modern art of the 20th century and made him one of the most popular artists of all time.