Read at The Van Gogh House inside the museum · the same label the museum panel shows, from content/inception/museum-labels/van-gogh-section-4.html

Faith, and a Father

His Father's Bible, and a Small Worn Book

Vincent painted his father's huge Bible lying open — and next to it, a small modern novel, worn soft from being read and loved. The quiet picture holds a quiet argument: the strict faith his father handed down, side by side with the ordinary everyday life where Vincent also went looking for God.

Van Gogh's Still Life with Bible, showing a large open Bible beside a small worn novel.
Still Life with Bible · 1885 · Oil on canvas
  • Should the holy be found only inside church walls, or also in fields and streets?
  • Who is God's message for — only a faithful few, passed along by a priest, or everyone, spoken to them directly?
  • Where does eternity appear: in ceremony, or in a sower, a sun, and a field of stars?

You do not have to share Vincent's faith to feel the questions. His answer was to pick up a brush.