Following the steps below will help you look at this painting, The Postman by Vincent van Gogh.
Step One: Look
- What is happening in this artwork?
- What is the mood of this painting?
- Share your ideas with another student. Do you agree?
Step Two: Analyze
- What colors do you see in the mailman's face?
- What colors are in his beard?
- Where do you see lines in the painting? Are they curvy or straight, neat or jagged?
- Compare the lines in the background to the mailman's beard.
- Look for marks made by van Gogh's brush.
- Where do see thick lines? Where do you see thin lines?
- Where do you see shadows? What color are they?
- Where is the mailman? Is he indoors or outdoors? Does he seem close up or far away?
- What do you notice about the background in the painting? Why do you think van Gogh surrounded his friends, like the mailman, with flowers in his paintings?
Step Three: Compare
To begin comparing this painting with others, please launch the slideshow found in the right sidebar.
Download the relevant worksheet here.
- What is the same between these two paintings? What is different?
Step Four: Explore
On the map below, locate where the artist Vincent van Gogh came from. Research it.
Download the relevant worksheets here and here.