Van Gogh lived from 1853 to 1890. He led a very dramatic life, at times full of generosity and kindness and at other times living with a lot of emotional problems. Van Gogh spent several years working with poor miners and preaching to the ill. Later in his life though, he was suspected of suffering from epilepsy to schizophrenia, two diseases of the mind. In one infamous episode he cut off part of his left ear during an extremely emotionally problematic event. At one point he lived in a mental hospital, but despite his emotional problems, his art is very valuable and highly respected today.

Another famous Post-Impressionist is Georges Seurat, who lived from 1859 to 1891. Though Seurat preferred the term Divisionism, the style he created is often referred to as Pointillism or Neo-Impressionism. In the painting to the left, "A Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte," Seurat used this style to create the soft texture. To do this he used a series of very small dots. Use the interactive image to zoom in and look closely at the painting. This particular painting is housed at the Art Institute of Chicago.