At Eternity's Gate

    At Eternity’s Gate by Vincent Van Gogh was painted in 1890 just prior to Van Gogh shooting himself and displays a man sitting in a chair burying his face in his hands. Van Gogh was a post-impressionist and extended impressionism, the emphasis on the subjective rather than realism, while rejecting its limitations by emphasizing geometric forms.  Van Gogh was depressive and suffered from mental illness which led to his eventual self-inflicted gunshot wound. This painting reflects the depression and loneliness that he felt in the final days of his life.(Van Gogh, Wikipedia)

    Its use of vivid colors that portray the man are contrasted by the dullness of the background. There is a focus on the man, yet his face can not even be seen. The man is shown as being of old age and wearing monochromatic clothing attracting the attention of the viewer to the face and hands of the man. The man sits alone in a small room devoid of color and there is evoked a sense of loneliness. Not only is this man literally alone, but his posture and expression of depression allude to a deeper loneliness within him. His face is buried into his hands displays a state of utter hopelessness which captures the feelings of the painter at that time. When one looks at this painting they see the unbridled emotions of a man on the brink of suicide and the complete loneliness that he felt at that moment in time. (At Eternity's Gate, Wikipedia)