Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers |
Details | ||
Oil on canvas 95.0 x 73.0 cm. Arles: January, 1889 F 458, JH 1667 Amsterdam: Van Gogh Museum
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History | ||
Provenance Exhibitions |
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Analysis | ||
See below |
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In August, 1888 Vincent van Gogh began painting a series of works which, as Dr. Jan Hulsker suggests "perhaps more than any other of his paintings, have made him known throughout the world. They are often the only works with which he is identified."1 This series is, of course, the sunflowers.
Van Gogh envisioned his sunflower works as a series and worked diligently on them in anticipation of the arrival in Arles of his friend, Paul Gauguin. In a letter to Emile Bernard written around 21 August 1888 Vincent wrote: "I’m thinking of decorating my studio with half a dozen paintings of Sunflowers. A decoration in which harsh or broken yellows will burst against various blue backgrounds, from the palest Veronese to royal blue, framed with thin laths painted in orange lead. Sorts of effects of stained-glass windows of a Gothic church." (Letter 665). Vincent eventually planned a dozen sunflower works to be hung in the Yellow House which he and Gauguin would use for a studio. "I’d like to do a decoration for the studio. Nothing but large Sunflowers. Next door to your shop, in the restaurant, as you know, there’s such a beautiful decoration of flowers there; I still remember the big sunflower in the window. Well, if I carry out this plan there’ll be a dozen or so panels. The whole thing will therefore be a symphony in blue and yellow. I work on it all these mornings, from sunrise. Because the flowers wilt quickly and it’s a matter of doing the whole thing in one go." (666). Unfortunately, Vincent's race against the changing seasons was unsuccessful and he was only able to complete four sunflower works in August, 1888. Without question, the most valuable resource with regards to insights into the development and execution of Van Gogh's works are his letters to his brother, Theo, and others. In his typically detailed and precise manner, Van Gogh describes the origin of the first three works in this series: I have 3 canvases on the go, 1) 3 large flowers in a green vase, light background (no. 15 canvas), [A] 2) 3 flowers, one flower that’s gone to seed and lost its petals and a bud on a royal blue background (no. 25 canvas), [B] 3) twelve flowers and buds in a yellow vase (no. 30 canvas). So the last one is light on light, and will be the best, I hope." [C] (666). A few days later Vincent writes in Letter 668: "I’m now on the fourth painting of sunflowers. This fourth one is a bouquet of 14 flowers and is on a yellow background."[D] The four works mentioned above are noted as "A" through "D" and further details are shown in this table below:
After Van Gogh's mental breakdown late in December in 1888, he would go on to paint three additional copies (F 455, F 457, F 458) of the original four sunflower works.
Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) are an annual plant native to North and South America. The species includes more than thirty varieties including "Orange Sun" and "Taiyo." The large, puffball like specimens seen in Van Gogh's paintings are known as the "Teddy Bear" variety.
1. Jan Hulsker, The New Complete Van Gogh: Paintings, Drawings, Sketches, (p. 352).
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Owner | City | Country | Date acquired | Comments |
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Theo van Gogh | Paris | France | 1890-91 | |
Johanna van Gogh-Bonger | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 1891-1925 | |
V.W. van Gogh | Laren | Netherlands | 1925-62 | |
Van Gogh Foundation | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 1962 | On loan to the Stedelijk Museum 1962-73. |
Van Gogh Museum | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 1973 | On permanent loan from the Vincent van Gogh Foundation. |
Year | City | Country | Venue | Exhibition Name | Start Date | End Date | No. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1905 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Stedelijk Museum | Tentoonstelling Vincent van Gogh | 15 July 1905 | 1 August 1905 | 104 |
1912 | Cologne | Germany | Städtische Ausstellungshalle am Aachener Tor | Internationale Kunstausstellung des Sonderbundes Westdeutscher Kunstfreunde und Künstler zu Köln | 25 May 1912 | 30 September 1912 | 28 |
1915 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Gebouw van het Genootschap van kunstenaren Moderne Kunstkring | Vincent van Gogh, werken van genooten. schilderijen, teekeningen en beeldhouwwerien | 26 September 1915 | 30 November 1915 | 9 |
1924 | Basel | Switzerland | Kunsthalle Basel | Vincent van Gogh | 27 March 1924 | 4 May 1924 | 40 |
1924 | Zurich | Switzerland | Kunsthaus Zurich | Vincent van Gogh | 3 July 1924 | 10 August 1924 | 35 |
1924 | Stuttgart | Germany | Württembergischer Kunstverein | Ausstellung Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 12 October 1924 | 30 November 1924 | 16 |
1925 | Paris (1) | France | Galerie Marcel Bernheim | Exposition rétrospective d'oeuvres de Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) | 5 January 1925 | 24 January 1925 | 26 |
1925 | The Hague | Netherlands | Pulchri Studio | Vincent van Gogh | |
28 | |
1930 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Stedelijk Museum | Vincent van Gogh en zijn tijdgenooten | 6 September 1930 | 2 November 1930 | 56 |
1935-36 | New York | United States | Museum of Modern Art | Vincent van Gogh | 5 November 1935 | 5 January 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Chicago | United States | Art Institute of Chicago | Vincent van Gogh | 26 August 1936 | 23 September 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Boston | United States | Museum of Fine Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 19 February 1936 | 15 March 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Cleveland (1) | United States | Cleveland Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh | 25 March 1936 | 19 April 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Detroit | United States | Detroit Institute of Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 6 October 1936 | 28 October 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Kansas City | United States | William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Atkins Museum | Vincent van Gogh | 9 June 1936 | 10 July 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Minneapolis | United States | Minneapolis Institute of Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 20 July 1936 | 17 August 1936 | 32 |
1936 | Philadelphia | United States | Philadelphia Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh | 11 January 1936 | 10 February 1936 | 32 |
1936 | San Francisco | United States | California Palace of the Legion of Honor | Vincent van Gogh | 28 April 1936 | 24 May 1936 | 32 |
1937 | Paris | France | Les Nouveaux Musées, Quai de Tokyo | La vie et l'oeuvre de Van Gogh | |
38 | |
1945 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Stedelijk Museum | Vincent van Gogh | 14 September 1945 | 1 December 1945 | --- |
1946 | Malmö | Sweden | Malmö Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Utställning Anordnad till Förmän för Svenska Hollandshjälpen | 29 May 1946 | 16 June 1946 | 65 |
1946 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Göteborgs Konstmuseum | Vincent van Gogh. Utställning Anordnad till Förmän för Svenska Hollandshjälpen | 3 May 1946 | 26 May 1946 | 65 |
1946 | Liège | Belgium | Musée des Beaux-Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 12 October 1946 | 3 November 1946 | 110 |
1946 | Stockholm | Sweden | Nationalmuseum | Vincent van Gogh. Utställning Anordnad till Förmän för Svenska Hollandshjälpen | 8 March 1946 | 28 April 1946 | 65 |
1946 | Brussels | Belgium | Palais des Beaux-Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 9 November 1946 | 19 December 1946 | 110 |
1946-47 | Mons | Belgium | Musée des Beaux-Arts | Vincent van Gogh | 27 December 1946 | 110 | |
1947 | Geneva | Switzerland | Musée Rath | 172 oeuvres de Vincent van Gogh | 22 March 1947 | 20 April 1947 | 113 |
1947 | Paris (1) | France | Musée de l'Orangerie | Vincent van Gogh | 24 January 1947 | 15 March 1947 | 113 |
1947-48 | London | United Kingdom | Tate Gallery | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 10 December 1947 | 14 January 1948 | 47 |
1948 | Bergen | Norway | Kunstforening | Vincent van Gogh, Malerier Tegninger | 23 March 1948 | 18 April 1948 | 33 |
1948 | Glasgow | Scotland | Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 21 February 1948 | 14 March 1948 | 47 |
1948 | Birmingham | United Kingdom | City Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 24 January 1948 | 14 February 1948 | 47 |
1948 | Oslo | Norway | Kunstnernes Hus | Vincent van Gogh, Malerier Tegninger | 24 April 1948 | 15 May 1948 | 33 |
1949-50 | New York | United States | Metropolitan Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh Paintings and Drawings. A Special Loan Exhibition | 21 October 1949 | 15 January 1950 | 78 |
1950 | Chicago | United States | Art Institute of Chicago | Vincent van Gogh Paintings and Drawings. A Special Loan Exhibition | 1 February 1950 | 16 April 1950 | 78 |
1951 | Lyons | France | Musée de Lyon | Vincent van Gogh | 5 February 1951 | 27 March 1951 | 41 |
1951 | Arles | France | Musée Réattu | Vincent van Gogh en Provence | 5 May 1951 | 27 May 1951 | 41 |
1953 | The Hague | Netherlands | Haags Gemeentemuseum | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1953 | 30 March 1953 | 17 May 1953 | 130 |
1953 | Saint Louis | United States | City Art Museum of Saint Louis | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 17 October 1953 | 13 December 1953 | 102 |
1953 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Stedelijk Museum | Eeuwfeest Vincent van Gogh | 23 July 1953 | 20 September 1953 | 107 |
1953 | Otterlo | Netherlands | Kröller-Müller Museum | Eeuwfeest Vincent van Gogh 1853-1953 | 24 May 1953 | 19 July 1953 | 107 |
1954 | Toledo | United States | Toledo Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 7 March 1953 | 30 April 1953 | 102 |
1954 | Zurich | Switzerland | Kunsthaus Zurich | Vincent van Gogh | 9 October 1954 | 21 November 1954 | 45 |
1954 | Philadelphia | United States | Philadelphia Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 | 2 January 1954 | 28 February 1954 | 102 |
1954-55 | Bern | Switzerland | Kunstmuseum Bern | Vincent van Gogh | 27 November 1954 | 30 January 1955 | 43 |
1955 | Liverpool | United Kingdom | Walker Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings, Mainly from the Collection of Ir. V.W. van Gogh | 29 October 1955 | 10 December 1955 | 47 |
1955 | Antwerp (1) | Belgium | Feestzaal | Vincent van Gogh | 7 May 1955 | 19 June 1955 | 265 |
1955-56 | Manchester | United Kingdom | Manchester City Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings, Mainly from the Collection of Ir. V.W. van Gogh | 17 December 1955 | 4 February 1956 | 47 |
1956 | Newcastle-upon-Tyne | United Kingdom | Laing Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings, Mainly from the Collection of Ir. V.W. van Gogh | 11 February 1956 | 24 March 1956 | 47 |
1957 | Marseilles | France | Musée Cantini | Vincent van Gogh | 12 March 1957 | 28 April 1957 | 54 |
1958 | San Francisco | United States | M.H. de Young Memorial Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 6 October 1958 | 30 November 1958 | 55 |
1958-59 | Los Angeles | United States | Los Angeles County Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 10 December 1958 | 18 January 1959 | 55 |
1959 | Aix-en-Provence | France | Pavillion de Vendôme | Van Gogh en Provence | 3 October 1959 | 30 November 1959 | 24 |
1959 | Portland | United States | Portland Art Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 28 January 1959 | 1 March 1959 | 55 |
1959 | Seattle | United States | Seattle Art Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 7 March 1959 | 19 April 1959 | 55 |
1959-60 | Utrecht | Netherlands | Centraal Museum | Vincent van Gogh schilderijen en tekeningen verzameling Ir. V.W. van Gogh | 18 December 1959 | 1 February 1960 | 41 |
1960 | Montreal | Canada | Montreal Museum of Fine Arts | Canada Collects: European Painting 1860-1960 | 6 October 1960 | 6 November 1960 | 54 |
1960 | Ottawa | Canada | National Gallery of Canada | Canada Collects: European Painting 1860-1960 | 17 November 1960 | 18 December 1960 | 54 |
1960-61 | Winnipeg | Canada | Winnipeg Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings-Drawings | 29 December 1960 | 31 January 1961 | 54 |
1961 | Baltimore | United States | Baltimore Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 18 October 1961 | 26 November 1961 | 52 |
1961 | Toronto | Canada | Art Gallery of Toronto | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings-Drawings | 10 February 1961 | 12 March 1961 | 54 |
1961-62 | Cleveland | United States | Cleveland Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 5 December 1961 | 14 January 1962 | 52 |
1962 | Boston | United States | Museum of Fine Arts | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 22 March 1962 | 29 April 1962 | 52 |
1962 | Buffalo | United States | Albright Art Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 30 January 1962 | 11 March 1962 | 52 |
1963 | Humlebaek | Denmark | Louisiana | Vincent van Gogh. Malerier og Tegninger | 24 October 1963 | 15 December 1963 | 38 |
1964 | Washington, D.C. | United States | Washington Gallery of Modern Art | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 2 February 1964 | 19 March 1964 | 38 |
1964 | New York (4) | United States | Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings | 2 April 1964 | 28 June 1964 | 38 |
1965 | Stockholm | Sweden | Moderna Museet | Vincent van Gogh. Mälningar, Akvareller, Teckningar | 23 October 1965 | 19 December 1965 | 36 |
1965 | Ghent | Belgium | Museum voor Schone Kunsten | Vincent van Gogh. Schilderijen, Aquarellen, Tekeningen | 19 February 1965 | 21 March 1965 | 26 |
1965 | Charleroi | Belgium | Palais des Beaux-Arts | Vincent van Gogh. Schilderijen, Aquarellen, Tekeningen | 19 January 1965 | 28 March 1965 | 26 |
1967 | Wolfsburg | Germany | Stadhalle Wolfsburg | Vincent van Gogh. Gemälde, Aquarelle, Zeichnungen | 18 February 1967 | 2 April 1967 | 56 |
1968-69 | London | United Kingdom | Hayward Gallery | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings of the Vincent van Gogh Foundation Amsterdam | 23 October 1968 | 12 January 1969 | 133 |
1970 | Baltimore | United States | Baltimore Museum of Art | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 11 October 1970 | 29 November 1970 | 37 |
1970-71 | San Francisco | United States | M.H. de Young Memorial Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 11 December 1970 | 31 January 1971 | 37 |
1971 | Brooklyn | United States | Brooklyn Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings | 14 February 1971 | 4 April 1971 | 37 |
1973 | Bern | Switzerland | Kunstmuseum Bern | Vincent van Gogh. Collection du Musée National Vincent van Gogh à Amsterdam | 25 January 1973 | 15 April 1973 | 26 |
1981 | Toronto | Canada | Art Gallery of Ontario | Vincent van Gogh and the Birth of Cloisonism | 24 January 1981 | 22 March 1981 | |
1981 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Van Gogh Museum | Vincent van Gogh and the Birth of Cloisonism | 9 April 1981 | 14 June 1981 | |
1990 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Van Gogh Museum | Vincent van Gogh. Schilderijen | 30 March 1990 | 29 July 1990 | 81 |
1998-99 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Rijksmuseum | Van Gogh te Gast in het Rijksmuseum. Meesterwerken van het Van Gogh Museum | 19 September 1998 | 2 May 1999 | |
2001-02 | Chicago | United States | Art Institute of Chicago | Van Gogh and Gauguin: The Studio of the South | 22 September 2001 | 13 January 2002 | 110 |
2002 | Amsterdam (1) | Netherlands | Van Gogh Museum | Van Gogh and Gauguin: The Studio of the South | 9 February 2002 | 2 June 2002 | |
2003 | Tokyo (2) | Japan | Sompo Japan Museum of Art | Van Gogh and Flowers | 20 September 2003 | 14 December 2003 | |
2006-07 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Van Gogh Museum | Vincent van Gogh and Expressionism | 24 November 2006 | 4 March 2007 | --- |
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