In 1885 Vincent’s father died (ArtBook: Van Gogh; A profound and tormented genius—his life in paintings, 1998).
In December of 1888, Vincent Van Gogh had been living with a fellow artist and friend, Paul Gauguin. They lived in “Yellow House”; the house that Vincent rented and had painted a picture of in September of that year. On the December 23, Van Gogh approached Gauguin with a razor blade and then left Yellow House in a panic and fled to a local brothel. This led Vincent to cut off part of his ear, which he then gave to a prostitute (Wikipedia, Rita Wildegans, 2007). Vincent spent 3 days unconscious in the hospital after that night and was released back home on January 7, 1889 (Jen Green, 2002).
In January and February Vincent was at the hospital a lot due to his hallucinations and paranoia. He thought that someone had poisoned him. In March the police closed down his house after a petition was signed by some of the locals and then was admitted into the town hospital in Arles (New World Encyclopedia, 2008).
Vincent reported once to his brother Theo that looking at his face in a mirror calmed him. In April, Vincent’s brother Theo got married and Vincent started to feel like a burden on him (Jen Green, 2002). In May 1889, Vincent agreed to go back into hospitalization at the Saint-Remy asylum. He reported during his stay there that painting soothed and healed his spirit (Jen Green, 2002).
In July 1889, Vincent tried to swallow his paints (which were poisonous). This happened again in December of 1889. In February 1889 he had been considered mentally ill for two months.
In May of 1890 Vincent left the