FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact: Cynthia Medina, c.medina@rutgers.edu, 848-445-1940
Experts Available to Discuss Van Gogh’s Contribution to Art, Mental Health Awareness
New Brunswick, N.J. (July 29, 2019) – Rutgers experts are available to discuss Vincent van Gogh’s contribution to 20th century art and his struggles with mental illness on the anniversary of death by suicide, 129 years ago.
“There have been numerous debates as to the nature of Van Gogh’s mental health and the effect of his illness on his work,” said Anthony Tobia, a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. “One thing he embodies is the clinical notion of resiliency, in making a tremendous artistic impact despite episodes of severe mental illness. In April 1889, Van Gogh was hospitalized for 12 months during which he completed several paintings including The Starry Night. Tragic endings to artists can be romanticized, but Van Gogh’s death at age 37 reminds us of the many years the world was robbed of one of the greatest artists history has ever seen.”
Susan Sidlauskas, chairperson and professor at Rutgers University–New Brunswick’s art history department, and expert on 19th century art, said, “What interests me most is the compulsion to mention his mental illness every time his paintings are discussed. In my ‘Art and Medicine’ course, the topic of his mental illness is often brought up, because it is the first thing that comes to mind for the 100 or so students in the course. While it is a part of the fascination of him as a person, more representation could be placed on his influence to 20th century and modern art.”
Tobia and Sidlauskas can be reached by emailing Cynthia Medina.
###
Broadcast interviews: Rutgers University–New Brunswick has broadcast-quality TV and radio studios available for remote live or taped interviews with Rutgers experts. For more information, contact Neal Buccino neal.buccino@echo.rutgers.edu
ABOUT RUTGERS—NEW BRUNSWICK
Rutgers University–New Brunswick is where Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, began more than 250 years ago. Ranked among the world’s top 60 universities, Rutgers’s flagship university is a leading public research institution and a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. It is home to internationally acclaimed faculty and has 12 degree-granting schools and a Division I Athletics program. It is the Big Ten Conference’s most diverse university. Through its community of teachers, scholars, artists, scientists, and healers, Rutgers is equipped as never before to transform lives.
