To begin, the art piece, The Potato Eaters by Van Gogh, portrays a poor peasant family during supper time. After inspecting the painting, it is evident that Van Gogh uses many techniques to communicate a message to those who view his art. There are five members in this family and it can be concluded that the family consists of the mother, father, daughter, and two grandparents. The emotions that encompass this family can be seen in the expression of each member except the daughter whose face is hidden in the art. In the faces of all the individuals especially the women, there is worry, fatigue, and concern. The uniqueness of Van Gogh's artistic style can be seen specifically in the way that he forms the faces of the family which makes the physical features of the members look realistic yet exaggerated . One of the notable components of Van Gogh's The Potato Eaters is the the meticulous use of dark colors in his painting. The prevalence of dark colors contributes to the mood of the painting because it arouses feelings of despair and gloom. Even the faces and clothes of the individuals are painted using dark hues in order to further express the unfortunate situation that these peasants are in due to their financial struggles. The fact that the family members are wearing simple clothing suggests poverty since they could not afford the colorful and beautiful clothes of the wealthy. Furthermore, Van Gogh conveys this family's poverty by depicting the setting that they live in. As can be seen, the ceiling is low which implies that the peasants live in a small house. Moreover, one can draw conclusions in regards to the family's economic status by observing the fact that there are not many objects in the house. In this painting, there is a clock, a picture, a lamp, two shelves, a kettle, four wooden chairs, a table, some cups, two kettles, and one large plate ("The Potato Eaters" ). After looking at the various objects in the house, it is clear that this family is poor because they only have a small amount of possessions. Their hardship is also evident in the dearth of food since they only have potatoes and coffee for dinner. Also, the fact that everyone is eating out of a single plate clearly serves as a symbol of financial struggle.
Without any doubt, Van Gogh does an exceptional job in depicting the family's economic status through his painting. This art work is a clear representation of social inequality because the peasants live in a society where there is a significant gap which continues to widen between the affluent and the poor. While the wealthy are living in their colossal mansions wearing adorned clothing and having lavish banquets sitting back in their thrones, there are poor families like this one that have to scrape every little bit to meet essential needs even after enduring back-breaking work everyday for long hours. In fact, in his letter to Theo, his brother, Van Gogh describes his purpose in the creation of this painting. "I wanted to convey the idea that the people eating potatoes by the light of an oil lamp used the same hands with which they take food from the plate to work the land, that they have toiled with their hands- that they have earned their food by honest means" (Tilborgh). In reality, the richer get richer while the poor get poorer. Individuals that have low economic status like these peasants have little opportunity to move up the social ladder and must take on everyday as a struggle for survival. During his missionary at a coal factory, Van Gogh had the opportunity to witness poverty first hand as he observed the lives of impoverished coal workers who faced hardships and financial struggles. Therefore, this painting was likely inspired by his observations of poverty in his society. A viewer of this claim asserts, "The painting of a family gathered around the table for the evening meal reflected his [Van Gogh's] preoccupation with the plight of the poor, whose lives he had experienced from close up" (Potter).
Without any doubt, Van Gogh does an exceptional job in depicting the family's economic status through his painting. This art work is a clear representation of social inequality because the peasants live in a society where there is a significant gap which continues to widen between the affluent and the poor. While the wealthy are living in their colossal mansions wearing adorned clothing and having lavish banquets sitting back in their thrones, there are poor families like this one that have to scrape every little bit to meet essential needs even after enduring back-breaking work everyday for long hours. In fact, in his letter to Theo, his brother, Van Gogh describes his purpose in the creation of this painting. "I wanted to convey the idea that the people eating potatoes by the light of an oil lamp used the same hands with which they take food from the plate to work the land, that they have toiled with their hands- that they have earned their food by honest means" (Tilborgh). In reality, the richer get richer while the poor get poorer. Individuals that have low economic status like these peasants have little opportunity to move up the social ladder and must take on everyday as a struggle for survival. During his missionary at a coal factory, Van Gogh had the opportunity to witness poverty first hand as he observed the lives of impoverished coal workers who faced hardships and financial struggles. Therefore, this painting was likely inspired by his observations of poverty in his society. A viewer of this claim asserts, "The painting of a family gathered around the table for the evening meal reflected his [Van Gogh's] preoccupation with the plight of the poor, whose lives he had experienced from close up" (Potter).