Jo van Gogh-Bonger: The Woman Who Made Vincent Famous (by Hans Luijten)
I have been savoring this book since my husband gave it to me for Christmas. This book has so many pictures that perfectly illustrate the content. As an admirer of Vincent van Gogh, I am grateful for this book that has taught me so much about Jo van Gogh’s life and how hard she worked for decades to expose the world to van Gogh’s amazing art work.
Jo van Gogh-Bonger: The Woman Who Made Vincent Famous by Hans Luijten provides an in-depth history of Jo’s life, from birth to death. It’s translated by Lynne Richards. I felt as though I could relate to Jo’s personality during her childhood. She spent a lot of time in solitude and loved reading. She even dreamed of writing a book. Jo had a very close relationship with her older brother, Andries. She seemed to rely on him quite a bit for guidance as she entered young adulthood.
Jo’s older brother, Andries, knew Theo and introduced the two. Theo was immediately smitten with Jo and proposed to her a year later. Jo seemed reluctant or maybe unsure about marrying Theo. They hardly knew each other and she didn’t seem to know herself. The author writes that Jo was introspective and was consumed with trying to understand who she was and how she fit into the world.
Once Jo spent time with Theo she was immediately smitten and accepted his marriage proposal. Theo was older, so she then looked to him to teach her about navigating the world. The two began their marriage living in Paris and soon had their only child, Vincent.
It’s widely known that Theo and Vincent were very close; therefore, Jo developed a close relationship with her brother in law. Tragically, Theo died from syphilis shortly after Vincent’s death. Widowed with an infant son, also named Vincent, and owner of hundreds of Vincent’s art, Jo moved back to the Netherlands where she opened a boarding house. Her life became focused on raising her son and continuing Theo’s work of selling Vincent’s art. She devoted her time to networking with people in the art world.
Jo loved being surrounded by Vincent’s art. The walls of her home were filled with Vincent’s paintings. This book contains many pictures of family members, art, and meaningful places. I love the picture below of Jo at her desk in her living room. On the wall above her are a couple of Vincent’s paintings.
Jo maintained close relationships with Theo’s family. She was especially close with Theo’s sister, Willemien. Sadly, Willemien developed a mental illness and was hospitalized for the rest of her life. Jo helped take care of Willemien by selling some of Vincent’s paintings to pay for her care, as well as visiting her regularly. Below is a picture of Jo, Vincent and Theo’s mother, and young Vincent.
Jo married Johan Cohen Gosschalk, a painter. Johan was supportive of Jo’s work to promote Vincent’s art and was helpful by writing articles. Johan was often ill and unable to leave the house for months at a time. His health problems were taxing on Jo. Regardless of the exhaustion she experienced, Jo consistently cared for her second husband until his death about 11 years after their marriage.
Jo also spent a tremendous amount of time organizing and translating the letters between Vincent and Theo. She fought very hard for the books to be published, which were lengthy and resulted in a three-volume set. Within the last few years of her life, Jo was translating the letters into English and seeking publication in American and London.
While reading about this three-volume set of books that Jo was responsible for publishing, I kept eyeing this gorgeous set of books on my shelf. It must have been the Christmas of 2000 when my mom gave me this slipcased three-volume set of books, The Complete Letters of Vincent van Gogh. All these years, I had no idea that Jo van Gogh was responsible for these books! What a treasure I have!! As a book collector, I love the visual interest they have in my library. Now, I must read them!
Jo was extremely fond her daughter-in-law, Josina. She maintained a close relationship with Vincent and Josina. Jo even moved to New York for about two and a half years where she lived with the young couple for much of that time. Three grandchildren were born prior to Jo’s death. Pictured below is Jo with her two oldest grandchildren.
Following Jo’s death, everything she owned went to Vincent. Her mission of exposing the world to van Gogh’s paintings, then fell to the painter’s nephew. He continued to loan paintings for exhibitions and refused to sell anymore works. Jo always refused to sell the sunflowers, the bedroom, and the yellow house. Vincent eventually sold his remaining collection to the government in Amsterdam, which led to the development of the Van Gogh Museum.
It’s a dream of mine to visit the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. For the time being, I follow them on Instagram. LOL My husband and I were fortunate to have visited the Van Gogh in America exhibit when it was recently in Detroit. You can read my blog post about our visit here.
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