In 1885, a 22-year-old Dutch woman named Johanna Bonger met Theo van Gogh, the younger brother of the artist. It was Paris in the belle epoque: art, theater, intellectuals, the streets of their Pigalle neighborhood raucous with cafes and brothels. From their first meeting, he regaled Jo with accounts of his brother Vincent’s tortured genius. During a stay in the village of Auvers-sur-Oise to the north of Paris, Vincent shot himself. Less than three months later Theo suffered a complete physical collapse during the latter stages of syphilis.

Source: New York Times June 27, 2021 12:56 UTC