Camille Corot

popular name: Amedeo Modigliani

date_of_death: January 24, 1920

age: 35

cause_of_death: Tubercular meningitis

claim_to_fame: Artists

best_know_for: Amedeo Modigliani was an Italian-born artist who moved to Paris in 1906, where he became known for his distinctive portraits and nudes, characterized by a surreal elongation of faces, necks, and figures — works that were not received well during his lifetime. His style evolved under the influence of various modernist movements, including post-impressionism, cubism, and African art. Modigliani's work often featured an intimate, sensual quality, with a focus on the human figure. Modigliani's life was marked by struggles, including poor health and financial hardship. He battled tuberculosis throughout much of his life, and his bohemian lifestyle in Paris exposed him to both the highs and lows of the city's artistic circles. He was known for his relationships with fellow artists including Pablo Picasso, Maurice Utrillo, Soutine and Constantin Brâncuși, as well as with several prominent women, including Jeanne Hébuterne, who was his muse and companion. Largely unrecognized during his lifetime, Modigliani sold most of his works, but never for any great amount of money and often for a meal or rent. Modigliani gained significant recognition after his death at age 35 where he died from complications of  tubercular meningitis. Today, his works—especially his portraits and nudes—have since become highly valued with the sale of Nu couché (1917–18) sold at auction for $170.4 million in 2015 to billionaire Liu Yiqian. Today, he is considered one of the most influential artists of the early 20th century. Upon his death, he was buried in Cimetière du Père-Lachaise in Paris, France.

popular name: Andrew Wyeth

date_of_death: January 16, 2009

age: 91

cause_of_death: Died in his sleep after a brief illness.

claim_to_fame: Artists

best_know_for: Andrew Wyeth (1917–2009) was a prominent American realist painter, best known for his detailed and emotionally evocative works that captured the rural landscapes and people of Pennsylvania and Maine. Born in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, he was the youngest of five children of famed illustrator N.C. Wyeth, who served as both his teacher and greatest influence. Wyeth gained national recognition in 1948 with his painting Christina’s World, which became one of the most iconic images in American art. Throughout his career, he worked primarily in watercolor and tempera, developing a muted, meticulous style that reflected his introspective nature and deep attachment to his surroundings. Despite his popularity with the public, Wyeth’s work often sparked debate among critics, some praising his technical mastery and emotional depth, while others viewed him as overly nostalgic.

popular name: Vincent van Gogh

date_of_death: July 29, 1890

age: 37

cause_of_death: Suicide - Gunshot wound

claim_to_fame: Artists

best_know_for: Vincent van Gogh was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, including around 860 oil paintings, most of which date from the last two years of his life. They include landscapes, still lifes, portraits, and self-portraits, and are characterised by bold colours and dramatic, impulsive and expressive brushwork that contributed to the foundations of modern art. His early works, mostly still lifes and depictions of peasant labourers, contain few signs of the vivid colour that distinguished his later work. In 1886, he moved to Paris where he met members of the avant-garde, including Émile Bernard and Paul Gauguin, who were reacting against the Impressionist sensibility. As his work developed he created a new approach to still life and landscape. His paintings grew brighter as he developed a style that became fully realised during his stay in Arles in the South of France in 1888. During this period he broadened his subject matter to include series of olive trees, wheat fields and sunflowers. During his lifetime van Gogh was not commercially successful and, struggling with severe depression and poverty, committed suicide at the age of 37. He was laid to rest at Auvers-Sur-Oise Communal Cemetery in Auvers-Sur-Oise, Val-d'Oise, France.