Van Gogh's Sunflowers: Two Series, Seven Vases, and a Triptych Dream
Vincent van Gogh crafted two notable sunflower painting series, the first in Paris during 1887 featuring wilting blooms on the ground. The second, more iconic series from his time in Arles, showcases sunflowers in a vase and was intended to beautify Paul Gauguin's room. This collection has seven works, with three in Munich, London, and Amsterdam, one privately owned, and another lost due to WWII. Insights into the creative process were recorded by Gauguin. Van Gogh's vibrant color palette marked a departure from conventional floral art, using sunflowers as symbols of joy. He detailed a triptych plan in a 1889 letter to his brother Theo.
Key facts
- Van Gogh made two series of sunflower paintings: an earlier Parisian series of four works with flowers on the ground, and the famous vase series.
- Paul Gauguin acquired two of the Parisian sunflower paintings and hung them above his bed.
- The vase series was painted as decoration for Gauguin's room in Arles.
- Van Gogh painted seven sunflower-in-a-vase canvases; three are in museums in Munich, London, and Amsterdam.
- One vase painting is in a private collection; another was lost during World War II.
- Versions of the vase series are at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Sompo Japan Museum of Art in Tokyo.
- Gauguin painted a portrait of Van Gogh working on the sunflower still lifes.
- Van Gogh planned a triptych with Woman Rocking the Cradle framed by two sunflower paintings, described in a letter to Theo on 22 May 1889.
Entities
Artists
- Vincent van Gogh
- Paul Gauguin
Institutions
- Kröller-Müller Museum
- Van Gogh Museum
- Neue Pinakothek
- National Gallery
- Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Sompo Japan Museum of Art
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Locations
- Paris
- Arles
- Otterlo
- Netherlands
- Amsterdam
- Munich
- Germany
- London
- UK
- Philadelphia
- PA
- USA
- Tokyo
- Japan
- New York
- NY