Van Gogh’s Dutch period

Van Gogh initially works in the Walloon region of the Borinage and in Brussels. In April 1881 he returns to his parental home in Etten in Brabant. The local, poor peasant population provides the subject for many studies on paper. His main role model is the French artist Jean-François Millet: according to Vincent, the true peasant painter.

Heads of the people

Van Gogh is an autodidact: he teaches himself to draw and paint. In the winter of 1881, he seeks support from his cousin by marriage Anton Mauve. Mauve gives him painting lessons and instructs him to study still life painting. In late 1883, Vincent moves to Nuenen, where his father is a pastor. Here too, the peasant folk are his main source of inspiration. He works on a series of 'heads of the people', for which the locals with their characteristic heads serve as models. Out of an admiration for the old masters, he paints them in dark, earthy tints, with strong light-dark contrasts. These so-called figure studies are in preparation for his first large composition: Van Gogh is autodidact: The Potato Eaters.

Van Gogh’s French period

In November 1885 Vincent travels to Antwerp to study figure drawing at the academy. However, he finds the study too academic. After three months he leaves for Paris to move in with his brother Theo. Two years later he departs the city for the south of France. There he achieves an unprecedented mastery in his work.

Light as inspiration

The impressionists' use of bright, vibrant colours and attention to light inspire him. He begins experimenting with bright, light colours and a looser brushstroke. His admiration for Japanese printmaking also influences his work. Van Gogh paints his last works of art in Auvers-sur-Oise, near Paris. He dies in 1890.

How do Van Gogh's mental problems influence his art?

Van Gogh struggles with mental problems throughout his life. He suffers from psychoses and hallucinations, and has alternating manic and depressive episodes, among other things. He spends some time in hospital. After a brief period at home when he suffers a relapse, Vincent has himself voluntarily admitted to a psychiatric hospital in Saint-Rémy. During his year-long stay, he continues to paint as much as possible.

The garden of the hospital

For the first month, Van Gogh is not allowed to leave the grounds. He finds inspiration in the hospital's overgrown garden with pine trees. One of his paintings from this time is The Garden of the Asylum at Saint-Rémy. Van Gogh paints the flowering trees and shrubs in a huge variety of shapes and colours. Referring to colours, the artist previously wrote to his sister Wil: ‘We need good cheer and happiness, hope and love. The uglier, older, meaner, iller, poorer I get, the more I wish to take my revenge by doing brilliant colour, well arranged, resplendent’.

What makes Vincent van Gogh’s style and technique so innovative?

The work of Vincent van Gogh is classified as post-impressionism, a movement that followed the 19th-century impressionism. Artists in this movement experiment with shape and colour, thick paint and clear lines, symbolism and personal expression. At the start of his career, Vincent works mainly with pen, charcoal and Indian ink. Later, he also learns to work with oil paint. In his work, he initially uses predominantly dark colours, while his later work is lighter and more colourful. He likes to experiment with contrasting colours that burst forth from the canvas.

Four Sunflowers Gone to Seed

Helene Kröller-Müller aims to assemble a collection of modern painting. In 1908 she purchases Van Gogh’s still life Four Sunflowers Gone to Seed. It is unlike most paintings with flowers. The sunflowers are not in a vase or pot, it is no beautifully arranged bouquet and does not have a pleasing background. There are just a few cut, withered sunflowers to be seen. Van Gogh paints the flowers full-size in warm and cool colours. They fill the entire canvas. The swirling brushstrokes and somewhat mysterious background make the work a highlight of Van Gogh's Parisian period.

Bridge at Arles

In May 1912 Helene Kröller-Müller purchases the work Bridge at Arles. She pays more than five times the asking price, which causes quite a stir. When Van Gogh has been living in Paris for two years, he travels to the south of France. He hears from artist friends about ‘the land of the blue tones and gay colours’. In Arles he paints several versions of the drawbridge over a canal near the town.

Your eye is immediately drawn to the bridge and the covered wagon crossing it. This is due to the clear blue water forming a diagonal in the image. He learnt about the use of such a large diagonal element from the Japanese prints he collected with his brother. According to Helene, the painting is one of the ‘most beautiful, most powerful, most crystal clear’ Van Goghs in her possession.

Terrace of a Café at Night

Six months after arriving in Arles, Van Gogh paints Terrace of a Café at Night by the light of a gas lamp. The nocturnal painting becomes one of the highlights of his career. The terrace stands out sharply against the dark blue and green tones in the rest of the painting.This is due to the bright light on the walls and the awning, and the orange floor. The painting also features the first starry sky in Van Gogh's oeuvre. Later research shows that he painted the position of stars precisely as they appeared on 16 or 17 September.

Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum) by Vincent van Gogh will not be on display at the museum until September 2026. The painting is currently on loan for a major Van Gogh exhibition in Japan. In the meantime you can experience the café terrace in a unique way at Join Vincent on his Terrace.

The Potato Eaters

Van Gogh makes studies of landscapes, peasants and weavers. Then he feels it is time for his first large painting, which must have the peasant life as its theme. The result is The Potato Eaters. He himself describes it as 'the peasants around a dish of potatoes'. Van Gogh is unsure whether to paint the family at the table in daylight or artificial light. He chooses the latter and devotes much attention to the effect of the lamplight. Fearing that the work might lose its liveliness, Van Gogh stops working on it when it still has a somewhat sketchy appearance. The Potato Eaters is without doubt the masterpiece of his Dutch period.

Self-Portrait

It's difficult to know yourself, but it's not easy to paint yourself either, according to Van Gogh. Nevertheless, he portrayed himself frequently in oil paint. In Paris he paints about 25 self-portraits. This self-portrait also dates from that time. Van Gogh probably painted so many self-portraits because he had no money to pay models. He uses himself as a model to practise rendering faces. He also experiments with an increasingly radical style. Helene purchases the self-portrait for ƒ 6,500 in 1919. It is the only self-portrait by Van Gogh in the museum's collection.