The Mysterious Life of Vincent Van Gogh

Hello Everyone and Happy Sunday! I know we’re all gearing up for the week ahead, so I thought this week’s Famously Unknown could be a fun – and artistic- treat to start the week off right!

Our famous Epileptic icon this week is artist Vincent Van Gogh. He lived with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy for many years, and in fact the condition had quite an influence on the works of art he created!

Read on below to learn some little known facts him!

10 fun facts about Vincent Van Gogh:

1. His family intended for him to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a pastor. He grew weary of the pressure and decided to pursue a life of art instead
2. Van Gogh didn’t begin painting until he was 27 years old, and sadly died 10 short years later at the age of 37
3. He produced over 900 original paintings over that span of 10 years
4. He could not afford to pay models to sit for his paintings. Instead he painted flowers, landscapes, and himself. In total he produced 37 self portraits
5. Van Gogh was a self taught artist with very little training
6. His most famous work of art “The Starry Night” was created while he was staying at an asylum in France
7. He sold only 1 painting during his lifetime and did not become famous until after his death
8. He had an older brother who died at birth. His name was also Vincent Van Gogh
9. In addition to Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, Van Gogh lived with multiple other mental and physical conditions
10. Contrary to popular belief, Van Gogh did not cut off his own ear. He only cut off a small portion of his ear lobe. This occurred while he was holding a razor during an Epileptic seizure.

Thank you for tuning in for another Famously Unknown! If there is a celebrity, icon, or someone special to you with Epilepsy that you would like featured here, please contact us! We can’t wait to hear from you!

Have a wonderful week everyone, and don’t forget to Seize The Day!