Lust for Life (novel) Lust for Life (novel) Lust for Life (1934) is a biographical novel written by Irving Stone based on the life of the famous Dutch painter, Vincent van Gogh, and his hardships. It was adapted into a film of the same name starring Kirk Douglas, which was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning one. It is Stone's first major publication and is largely based on the collection of letters between Vincent van Gogh and his younger brother, art dealer Theo van Gogh. They lay the foundation for most of what is known about the thoughts and beliefs of the artist. Stone
The Letters of Vincent van Gogh were written to Theo, 9 to Theo and Jo. Of the letters Vincent received from Theo, only 39 survive. The first letter was written when Vincent was 19 and begins, "My dear Theo". At that time Vincent was not yet developed as a letter writer – he was factual, but not introspective. When he moved to London, and later to Paris, he began to add more personal information. Beginning in 1888 and ending a year later, van Gogh wrote 22 letters to Émile Bernard in which the tone is different from those to Theo. In these letters, van Gogh wrote