From the Artist: "Greetings from El Salvador, a small country in Central America. I began painting in February 2003 and all of a sudden I have become a Van Gogh fan. It really struck me when I found that he inspires me so much. I do truly believe that Vincent's paintings have become my biggest influence in how I really want to paint.
This little chair belongs to my mother (our family call her Manto), who happens to have it since 1940, when she was one year old. I used colors the way I think Vincent did: blue against orange, purple against yellow, and green against red. (The chair has red underpainting, visible in small parts.)
Being a novice/beginner in the field, I would be very happy to hear from you, about what you think about my work. I have not taken any course or class on art/painting, so this is just by instinct and by reading a couple of books.
By the way, I'm 38 years old, so I know that I have started a little late my journey into painting, but since I was a kid, I allways thought that painting would be a great way of spending my years when I grew to be an old man. (Not that I am an old man at this moment...)."
From the Painting Guide: As a lot of people will testify, it's never too late to start painting! Afterall, being an artist wasn't Van Gogh's first career path either... but just as well for the rest of us that he didn't make a very successful art dealer nor preacher.
I think you've really captured the feeling of a Van Gogh in this painting of yours, not least in the intense colors, impasto brushwork, and in the associations viewers will make with the painting Van Gogh did of his chair, but also by the emotional level added by this being a chair belonging to your mother and one she's had her whole life. To me having the chair standing by itself creates a feeling of absence, whereas if you'd placed, say, a piece of clothing belonging to your mother on the chair or a cup of tea on the floor, it would create a feeling of her presence, as if she'd just stood up.