Did you know Van Gogh may have been colorblind?

I came across this in-depth slide presentation on Art and Perception while scouring the web for ideas for our next project. Among all the fascinating points the author presents he mentions the researcher Kazunori Asada who has convincing theories on the potential colorblindness of renowned artist Vincent Van Gogh. In the presentation link, you can see more comparisons between Van Gogh’s actual paintings (image on left) against those through a colorblindness lens (image on right). Surprisingly, the latter leans more toward a realistic interpretation of the landscape. Asada’s theory totally threatens those made by art historians who link Van Gogh’s alternative color choices with his own emotional turmoil as noted in any Modern Art History 101 class.

 

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