Source: Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh, October 1882 (The Letters of Vincent van Gogh, letter 274). Translation wording varies between editions.
More than ever in the social media age and with AI enabling images to be made in seconds, we have this narrative of great art or breakout projects happening in an instant, overnight through a burst of inspiration and one perfect idea. With this in mind, Vincent van Gogh's quote, “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together”, is more important than ever before, as it’s a reminder that art is a labour of love, achieved through practice and time.
Writing to his brother Theo in 1882, long before anyone was hanging Sunflowers on gallery walls or printing The Starry Night on coffee mugs, Van Gogh described creativity as something far less glamorous. For him, it was the accumulation of learning, repetition, getting a little bit better, then doing it all again the next day.
At this point Van Gogh wasn't Van Gogh™ – there wasn't a gift shop, and nobody was buying phone cases with Sunflowers on them. He was penniless, still finding his style, teaching himself how to draw and wondering if any of it would amount to anything. The artist we celebrate today was built on piles of sketches, failed studies and countless experiments, not a handful of inspired afternoons that just happened to deliver art we love today, but let’s remember, it wasn’t like that in his time.
That's why, for me, this quote has lasted, because it cuts straight through the idea that great artists are simply born with some mysterious gift the rest of us missed out on. Van Gogh knew talent mattered, but he also knew that hard work and practice were important.
It feels especially relevant now, when social media shows us everyone's polished final image while skipping the fifty messy versions that came first. Digital artists, illustrators, designers, and photographers are all susceptible to believing someone else found the shortcut, and the best digital art software doesn’t help by literally calling new features ‘shortcuts’, and new AI tools promise to skip the hard part, which sounds fantastic until you realise the hard part was where most of the learning happens.
Van Gogh’s words should be a reminder that trying and ideas matter, that learning the basics means something, and that in a world where AI can do it all for you, having a portfolio that shows it hasn’t is incredibly important. The best portfolios show growth, accidents, dozens of experiments, abandoned ideas, and lessons that only make sense in hindsight when your best work is on show. The reassuring part of Van Gogh's advice is a recognition that every sketch counts, even the bad ones.
