Vincent van Gogh: He Sold Very Few Paintings… Now the Whole World Loves Them
Vincent van Gogh painted for only ten years and sold very few paintings. His brother Theo helped him, and in the south of France he painted a yellow house and sunflowers. Today the whole world loves his work. Learn five A1 words with the true story of Vincent van Gogh.
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
He painted for only ten years.
He very few paintings.
Today, people wait in long lines to see them.
This is the story of Vincent van Gogh.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. An makes pictures.
Vincent wanted to be an .
. Your has the same mother and father as you.
His Theo helped him.
. You paint with a .
He took his and painted.
. is the colour of the sun.
He painted a house.
. A is a big flower.
He painted .
Now, one pattern: more and more.
We use it when something grows again and again.
He painted a lot. Then more. Then more.
He painted more and more.
Ready? Let's begin.
Vincent van Gogh was born in the Netherlands in 1853.
He had a big family.
His little Theo was his best friend.
He worked in a shop, then in a school.
At twenty-seven, Vincent wanted to be an .
His Theo helped him.
His first pictures were dark and brown.
Then he went to Paris.
He saw new colours.
He used more and more colours.
But did people buy his paintings?
In 1888, he went to the south of France.
The sun was hot.
He painted a house.
He painted .
He took his and painted more and more!
But people did not buy his paintings.
He very few.
He was often ill and sad.
He died in 1890.
He was only thirty-seven.
Theo's wife, Jo, showed his paintings to the world.
More and more people loved them.
Today, his paintings cost millions!
Let's review. Vincent wanted to be an .
His Theo helped him.
He took his and painted.
He painted a house.
He painted .
And remember: he painted more and more.
Vincent van Gogh's story teaches us: keep doing what you love.
Want more interesting lessons?
Go to brightlivesenglish.com.
Please subscribe and learn with us.
Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
artist noun
a person who makes pictures
“Vincent wanted to be an artist.”
brother noun
a boy or man with the same mother and father as you
“His brother Theo helped him.”
brush noun
you paint with it
“He took his brush and painted.”
yellow adjective
the colour of the sun
“He painted a yellow house.”
sunflower noun
a big yellow flower
“He painted sunflowers.”
starry adjective
full of stars
“He painted a starry night.”
canvas noun
strong cloth that artists paint on
“He painted on canvas.”
sell verb (past: sold)
to give something for money
“He sold very few paintings.”
Grammar in the story
more and more
We use it for: to say that something grows again and again
- He painted more and more.
- He used more and more colours.
- More and more people loved them.
From the story
- He painted more and more.
- More and more people loved them.
Find it in the story 6 times
Your turn
He painted more and .
and more people loved his paintings.
He used more and more .
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
Well done!
Look at these again
This week's top 10
Resets every MondayNo scores yet this week. Be the first!
Lesson complete!
- 0/4steps
- 0/8words learned
- 0/3stars
Up next
Loading your next story…
Take it further
Before you watch: What is your favourite colour? Do you like painting or drawing?
After you watch: Write three sentences with more and more. For example: I read more and more. My English is better and better. More and more people learn English.
Think about it: Vincent sold very few paintings, but he did not stop. Today the whole world loves them. Why do you think he kept painting?
