At Chennai Book Fair, a stall dedicated for van Gogh
The stall has books about van Gogh, with the special book being the letters he wrote to his brother
Nambirajan (R) at his bookstall at the Chennai Book Fair (Photo credit: Ashish P)
CHENNAI: Inspired by his love for master artist Vincent van Gogh, a man from Tirunelveli has set up a stall named Van Gogh Books in the Chennai Book Fair. Pleasantly surprised to find it, most artists and art enthusiasts visiting the fair stop by stall number 523 to ask the proprietor, who passionately explains about his love for the Dutch painter.
Nambirajan M, a resident of Tirunelveli, set up a book stall in Coimbatore named Van Gogh Books six months ago. Now, he is working on the plans to launch Van Gogh Publications by mid-2025.
"Van Gogh was not respected when he was alive. He had a history of carrying his paintings on shoulders for sale but people were not ready to spend money to buy them. However, he was recognised later by the world. I have given his name to the bookstall as a mark of respect, and I want his name to stay with people forever," Nambirajan said.
The stall has books about van Gogh, with the special book being the letters he wrote to his brother. Reprints of van Gogh’s paintings are also on sale. The stall has other books in Tamil, in genres ranging from autobiography to politics.
“Many of my friends are artists and interacting with them created a love for paintings. This brought me close to van Gogh’s works, and I have a good collection of reprints of his paintings," Nambirajan said.