Guess the Artist: Faith, Failure, and Finding Purpose

 In this week’s mini episode, Candice shares the story of a famous artist through his own words, exploring faith, failure, calling, and the long road to becoming who God intended him to be. Through twelve powerful quotes and moments from his life, we see a man who deeply loved God, struggled to find his place in the world, and never stopped seeking purpose.

This episode is a reminder that our path may not look like we expected, that setbacks do not mean we are forgotten, and that God can use our passions, even unexpected ones, to bless others. Whether your calling feels unclear or your efforts feel unseen, this conversation invites us to trust that God directs our paths, often one small step at a time.

Shownotes (clickable links)

Proverbs 3:5-6 

Artist Quotes

Artist Facts 

Sisters with Latter-Day Voices website

Transcript

Fair Use & Disclaimer
 This podcast episode may contain brief quotes from external sources, used in a positive and respectful manner for discussion, education, and commentary. These references fall under fair use as they are not used for commercial gain, do not replace the original works, and are presented with proper context and attribution.

The views and opinions expressed in this episode are our own and those of our guests. They do not necessarily reflect the official doctrine, beliefs, or positions of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Transcript

Clare
 Welcome to Sisters Latter-day Voices. I’m Clare.

Candice
 And I’m Candice. And for today’s mini episode, I thought it would be fun to play a little game. So I have one famous person that I’m going to be talking about, but I’m not going to tell you who it is, and you can see if you can guess it by the end.

This person is famous, and I have twelve quotes. Bear with me, because there are just so many good quotes that I had a hard time choosing. So there are twelve quotes, and I’m going to read a quote, then share a little blip about this man’s life, then another quote and a blip.

I get annoyed saying “quote, end quote,” so I’m just going to snap at the end of the quote. So here we go.

Quote one:
 “Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.” snap

His father was a pastor, and he was the oldest of six children. He loved nature and reading but struggled with school and the discipline of school. He had an unpredictable temperament, and he was very close with one of his younger brothers. He wrote over six hundred and fifty letters over the course of his life.

Clare
 Oh, I like that. It is crazy to think, wow, that’s a lot of letters. But if you consider how much we text or call people, that’s not very many.

Candice
 That’s true. But compared to some other famous people from that time period, just having so much of his written word really shows his personality.

Quote two:
 “One may have a blazing hearth in one’s soul, and yet no one ever came to sit by it. Passersby only see a wisp of smoke from the chimney and continue on their way.” snap

I like this because I think so much of us, we all have talents, but sometimes we’re hiding our talents and people don’t really see what we’re capable of.

Anyway, he started apprenticing as an art dealer at age sixteen, and he stayed in that career for about seven years. He was very passionate about studying art and encouraged his brother to read about art any chance that he could. He started in the Netherlands, then moved to London, then to Paris, but was eventually let go. Even though he was passionate about the subject, he was not passionate about his job and was let go due to declined performance.

Quote three:
 “What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?” snap

He was rejected by a woman he fell in love with, and that hurt had a lasting impact on him. She was the daughter of his landlady.

Quote four:
 “I’m such a nobody.” snap

He felt deep shame about failing to succeed after he was fired. His uncle, who had originally helped him get that job, refused to help him, and his father did not hide his disappointment in him. He didn’t quite know what to do with himself.

Quote five:
 “Whoever loves much, performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is done well.” snap

So his dad was a pastor, and he grew up in the church.

Clare
 It sounds like—

Candice
 —he grew up—

Clare
 —like—are you clicking something every once in a while?

Candice
 I’m just snapping at the end of the quotes. You know, it’s the end of the quote.

Clare
 Oh, it’s a snap.

Candice
 Yeah. Is that okay?

Clare
 I don’t think people are going to know what that is.

Candice
 Well, I explained it before I started reading the quotes.

Clare
 Oh, you said you were going to snap.

Candice
 Yeah. I said I don’t like saying “quote, end quote” because it’s annoying. So I’m going to snap. Or is that annoying? Should I not do that?

Clare
 Oh, for some reason I must have been in the zone and didn’t hear you say that.

Candice
 I’m keeping with it.

Clare
 That was me.

Candice
 I think it’s fun.

Clare
 All right.

Candice
 So he found a job as a teaching assistant through a classified ad. He worked at a primary school in a poor, working-class neighborhood, and he felt a lot of compassion for the people there. This experience very quickly inspired him to spread the word of God among them.

He was soon hired to be a Methodist minister. At that point, he decided he wanted to be a minister.

Quote six:
 “I am still far from being what I want to be, but with God’s help, I shall succeed.” snap

Clare
 Ooh, I like that one.

Candice
 Yeah, it’s good. He felt his calling was to bring people the word of God, so he studied theology in Amsterdam for a short period of time. His results in school were not high enough for him to take the exams, so instead he dropped that and joined a missionary training school. At the end of his training, though, he was not offered a job.

Clare
 Dang. A lot of setbacks.

Candice
 Yeah.

Quote seven:
 “There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.” snap

He decided to minister outside of any institutional framework and moved to one of Belgium’s most destitute regions. He lived among miners and was known to give away all that he had. He ate little and slept in a hut on a pile of straw.

Quote eight:
 “I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart.” snap

The Evangelical Council heard about him and wanted him to have a supervisor, so they sent him to work with a pastor in Wasmes. During that time, there was an uprising among the miners, and he sided with them as they protested the use of child labor. Because he sided with the miners, the council refused to renew his contract.

Quote nine:
 “In the end, we shall have had enough of cynicism, skepticism, and humbug, and we shall want to live more musically.” snap

After losing that contract, he hit a low. At age twenty-six, his life had resulted in an accumulation of failures and disappointments. He kept talking to and meeting with the miners and started sketching the world around him. He sketched many men and women working in desolate landscapes and the houses there.

Quote ten:
 “I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things.” snap

Ten years earlier, his brother had urged him to pursue art because he was clearly passionate about it and sent so many sketches in his letters. But at the time, he saw it as a selfish pleasure and felt faith should be his priority. After years of trying unsuccessfully to be a pastor, he finally decided to switch gears, at his brother’s urging, and become an artist. At that point, he devoted himself fully to that pursuit.

Quote eleven:
 “The beginning is perhaps more difficult than anything else, but keep heart. It will turn out all right.” snap

His brother Theo supported him financially and emotionally while he pursued art. He went to art school and moved back in with his parents for a short period of time, but that relationship struggled, and he moved out. He was rejected by another woman he fell in love with, a widow with a child. After years of studying the rules of art and sketching, he started using color and painting with oils.

So, do you guys know who I’m talking about yet? I know you know, Clare, because I told you.

Clare
 But if you hadn’t told me, I would have no idea.

Candice
 Yeah, right. This will give it away. One of his most famous paintings is Starry Night. I love thinking of this last quote when looking at that painting.

Quote twelve:
 “Be clearly aware of the stars and infinity on high. Then life seems almost enchanted after all.” snap

So this person is Vincent van Gogh.

Sadly, I think what most people know about him is that he was “crazy” and tragically ended his life. There are actually a lot of different theories about what happened, including how he lost his ear and how his life ended. But we don’t really know all the facts.

Clare
 For some reason, I always thought he killed himself. I didn’t know he got shot.

Candice
 That’s very common. But there are arguments suggesting someone else may have shot him, and we just don’t know for sure. He did have issues, but I wanted to highlight him because I think he’s largely misunderstood.

His brother Theo described him this way:
 “It appears there are two different beings in him. The one marvelously gifted, fine, and delicate, and the other selfish and heartless… It is a pity that he is his own enemy, for he makes life difficult not only for others, but also for himself.”

I wanted to present him this way because there was so much goodness in him. Because he wrote so many letters, it’s very clear how he felt about religion. He was deeply passionate about bringing people the word of God. That would have been his lifelong pursuit if it had worked out.

When he became an artist, he was destitute, but he was so passionate and wanted so badly to make an impact. In his art, you see his love for humanity. He painted common people working in the fields and had a soft spot for people who struggled.

Clare
 I remember thinking his art was weird, but then also really powerful.

Candice
 I love his art. It’s very unique, and you can always tell it’s his. Another reason I wanted to highlight him is because he didn’t get to see his success. Today he’s a household name, but during his life, he struggled so much.

We may not have the same impact on the world as van Gogh, but we might feel that desire to make a difference. Even impacting one person for good matters. Jesus went after the one.

Clare
 And you can love both faith and art. Sometimes art or other talents are how we share our testimony or the Savior’s light.

Candice
 For sure. God can show us unique ways to impact the world if we’re connected to Him. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and He shall direct thy paths for good.

Clare
 Thanks for joining us. We hope you know that God loves you. Bye.