VAN GOGH - SKELETON W/ CIGARETTE, C/16Skull of a Skeleton with Burning Cigarette was created while van Gogh was a student at the Acadmie Royale des Beaux Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. He attended life classes to improve his command of the human figure, where a skeleton was used to study anatomy. the burning cigarette placed between the teeth of this bare skull typifies the irreverent humor that often reigned among art students, but the striking feature of this painting is van Gogh's vital and