Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh (c. 14 March 1888) ... Remember me kindly to Koning. Are you well? I am better
myself, except that eating is a real ordeal, since I have a touch
of fever and no appetite, but it's only a question of time and
patience.
I have company in the evening, for the young Danish painter
who is here is a decent soul: his work is dry, correct and
timid, but I do not object to that when the painter is young
and intelligent. He originally began studying medicine: he knows
Zola, de Goncourt, Guy de Maupassant, and he has
enough money to do himself well. And with all this, a very
genuine desire to do very different work than what he is
producing now.
I think he would be wise to delay his return home for a
year, or to come back here after a short visit to his
friends.
But, my dear brother, you know that I feel as though I am in Japan - I
say no more than that, and I still haven't seen anything in its
usual splendour yet.
That's why (even though I'm vexed that just now expenses
are heavy...
Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh (9 April 1888) ... constitution. The
only thing is that my stomach has been terribly weak since I
came here, but after all that's probably only a matter of time.
I hope to make great progress this year, and indeed I need
to.
I have another orchard, as good as the pink peach trees ,
apricot trees of a very pale pink. At the moment I am working
on some plum trees, yellowish-white, with thousands of black
branches . I am using a tremendous lot of
colours and canvases, but all the same I hope it isn't a waste
of money.
Out of 4 canvases, perhaps one at the most will
make a painting, like the one for Tersteeg or Mauve; but
the studies, I hope, will come in useful for exchanges.
When can I send you anything? I have a great mind to do a
second version like Tersteeg's, because it is better than the
Asnières studies.
Yesterday I saw another bull fight, where 5 men worked
the bull with darts and cockades. One toreador crushed a
ball in jumping...
Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh (c. 21 April 1888) ... and eat two eggs every morning.
My stomach is
very weak, but I hope to be able to get it right; it will take
time and patience. In any case I am really much better already than in Paris.
Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Emile Bernard (c. 21 April 1888) ... 1 in the air
here.
For the moment I am still lying low and keeping
very quiet, for first of all I must recover from a stomach disorder of
which I am the happy owner, but after that I shall have to make
a lot of noise, as I aspire to share the glory of the immortal
Tartarin de Tarascon.
I was enormously interested to hear that you intend to spend
your time [as a soldier] in Algeria. That is perfect, and quite
far from being a misfortune. Really, I congratulate you on it;
at any rate we shall see each other in Marseilles.
You will see how delighted you will be with seeing the blue
here and with feeling the sun. At present I have a terrace for
a studio.
I certainly intend to go do seascapes at Marseilles too; I
don't yearn for the grey sea of the North. If you see Gauguin,
remember me most kindly to him. I must write to him right
now.
My dear comrade Bernard, don't despair and above all don't
have spleen, old fellow, for with your talent and
...
Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh (1 May 1888) ... I am better than I was in Paris, and if my
stomach has become terribly weak, it's
a trouble I picked up there and most likely due to the bad wine, which I drank too much of. The
wine is just as bad here, but I drink very little of it.
