On 27 July 1890, in a field near Auvers, Vincent shot himself in the chest with a revolver. He died two days later, with his brother Theo at his bedside. Why did he choose to end his life?
Vincent van Gogh, Wheatfield with Crows, 1890
In short
Van Gogh's Death
Vincent’s letters suggest that he was mentally unstable:
‘my life, is attacked at the very root, my step also is faltering’
To Theo from Auvers-sur-Oise, 10 July 1890
He was also exhausted from working hard and the high standards he set for himself. He was uncertain about the future and felt that he had failed, as a man and as an artist.
Even though he was, in fact, starting to get recognition for his work.