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Portrait of Milliet, Second Lieutenant of the Zouaves

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 Details
Oil on canvas
60.0 x 49.0 cm.
Arles: late September, 1888
F 473, JH 1588

Otterlo: Kröller-Müller Museum
History
Provenance
Exhibitions
Analysis
See below


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This painting depicts Paul-Eugène Milliet, second lieutenant in the third regiment of the Zouaves. Milliet and Vincent van Gogh became friends in 1888 when both men were in Arles, France.


Biography of Milliet

Paul-Eugène Milliet was the son of a military policeman and lived most of his life as a soldier. Milliet grew up in army barracks and his military career had been progressing well by the time he was temporarily stationed in Arles in 1888. Milliet's regiment had just returned from Tonkin (then French Indochina, now the region around the Gulf of China in Vietnam). During that campaign Milliet had contracted an illness and looked forward to convalescing in the south of France.

In August Milliet made a brief journey to Paris and was entrusted with thirty six of Vincent's studies to give to the artist's brother, Theo. He stayed in Arles for the rest of the summer and into early autumn, finally leaving around 1 November for Algeria. In the years to follow Milliet had a distinguished career in the military, serving in Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and during the First World War. He retired with the rank of lieutenant-colonel and had received the decoration of Commander of the Légion d'Honneur.

In 1930 a writer, Pierre Weiller, was looking for a new apartment in Paris and went to meet with his prospective landlady. Upon arrival Weiller was met by the landlady's husband, none other than Paul-Eugène Milliet, by then retired from the military. Weiller quickly recognized Milliet and interviewed him about his acquaintance with Vincent van Gogh. He later wrote an article "We've Tracked Down Van Gogh's Zouave" based on that interview.1

Milliet died in Paris during the German occupation of World War II.


The Zouaves

The Zouaves were a group of light infantry personnel in the French army. The Zouave soldiers were mainly from Algeria and, though European, their uniforms showed arabesque influences. In addition to his portrait of Milliet, Vincent van Gogh would depict another Zouave in five other works:

Interestingly, there was an American offshoot of the Zouaves that few know about today. During the American Civil War, regiments on both sides often chose special names and uniforms for themselves. On the Union side there were a number of regiments that modeled themselves after France's Zouaves. They wore short blue jackets, yellow shirts and red pantaloons and were often seen in battle around 1861. By 1863, however, the American Zouave regiments became more uncommon.


Relationship with Van Gogh

Paul-Eugène Milliet was atypical of many who chose a life long career in the military. Milliet had a keen interest in art and was enthusiastic about painting and drawing. It was only natural that he and Van Gogh would gravitate toward one another in Arles. Van Gogh wrote to Emile Bernard:

I know a second lieutenant in the Zouaves here; his name is Milliet. I give him drawing lessons--with my perspective frame--and he is beginning to do some drawings and, honestly, I've seen far worse. He is keen to learn . . . .

Letter B7

Vincent encouraged Milliet in his work and was impressed enough to write to Theo and ask him to send Cassagne's instructional book ABCD du dessin in order to assist with his tutelage of the young Zouave. Throughout the summer of 1888 Vincent van Gogh and Paul-Eugène Milliet spent much time together, exploring the countryside and discussing art. Van Gogh recalled one pleasant day:

I have come back from a day at Montmajour, and my friend the second lieutenant was with me. We explored the old garden together and stole some excellent figs. If it had been bigger it would have made me think of Zola's Paradou, great reeds, vines, ivy, fig trees, olives, pomegranates with lusty flowers of the brightest orange, hundred-year-old cypresses, ash trees and willows, rock oaks, half-broken flights of steps, ogive windows in ruins, blocks of white rock covered with lichen, and scattered fragments of crumbling walls here and there among the greenery. I brought back another big drawing, but not of the garden. That makes three drawings. When I have half a dozen I shall send them along.

Letter 506

Vincent enjoyed his time with Milliet, finding in him a friend that he could share ideas with. Still, the pair's relationship was somewhat turbulent--a frequent pattern accompanying Van Gogh's friendships. Early in his career, Vincent van Gogh enjoyed learning from his cousin by marriage, the painter Anton Mauve. Van Gogh very much valued their time painting together, but he was extremely sensitive to criticism and this had a detrimental effect on their relationship. Similarly, Van Gogh took great pleasure from his friendship with painter Anthon van Rappard, but they too would eventually have a falling out when Rappard criticized Van Gogh's first great painting The Potato Eaters.

The relationship between Van Gogh and Milliet would follow a similar path. In the Weiller interview Milliet described his disapproval of Van Gogh's technique (somewhat irrationally, given that Van Gogh's works had become very successful by the time of the interview):

What I find wrong in [Van Gogh's paintings] is that they are not drawn. He painted too broadly, he gave no attention to details, he never sketched out his design. Even though, (and I repeat,) when he wanted to, he knew how to draw. He let colour take the place of drawing, which is nonsense, because colour completes the design. And what colour . . . excessive, abnormal, inadmissible. Tones too hot, too violent, not restrained enough. You see, my friend, the painter has to make a painting with love, not with passion. A painting has to be "cuddled"; Van Gogh, he, he raped it . . . Sometimes, he was a veritable brute--"hard-assed," as they say . . . .2

Still, Milliet maintained a pleasant friendship with Van Gogh right up until the time of his departure for Algeria. Milliet further commented: "He had faith, a faith in his talent, a somewhat blind faith. Pride. His constitution didn't seem to me very strong. But, on the whole, a good friend, not a bad guy . . . ."


The painting

The portrait above is a fairly straightforward study of the subject--very typical of similar portraits executed during Van Gogh's Arles period. It's likely that Van Gogh painted the work quickly because he lamented that Milliet "poses badly" (Letter 541a). Milliet is seen in his military uniform and wears a commemorative medal from his expedition to Tonkin. The background is a deep green of broad and forceful brushstrokes. The relatively plain background (plain, if compared with the more floral and ornate backgrounds found in, say, Portrait of the Postman Joseph Roulin from the same period). The only flourish is the star and crescent moon symbol seen in the upper right hand corner. This symbol was the coat of arms for Milliet's Zouave regiment and serves to further define the portrait's subject.

In gratitude for sitting for him and for delivering completed works to Theo, Van Gogh rewarded Milliet with a study (see Letter 561), but the fate of that study is unknown.


In comparison . . . .

Vincent van Gogh wasn't the only artist to portray a Zouave soldier in his art. For a comparative view, see the painting Portrait of a Zouave by Amedeo Modigliani (shown at right).

Click here to view a large version of Modigliani's 'Portrait of a Zouave'

Footnotes

1. Reprinted in Susan Stein's collection, pages 108-111 (see References below).
2. Ibid, p. 110.


References

1. Jan Hulsker, Vincent and Theo Van Gogh: A Dual Biography (Fuller Technical Publications, 1990).
2. Ronald Pickvance, Van Gogh in Arles (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1984).
3. Susan Alyson Stein, Van Gogh: A Retrospective (Beaux Art Editions, 1986).
4. David Sweetman, Van Gogh: His Life and Art (Touchstone, 1990).
5. Marc Edo Tralbaut, Vincent van Gogh (Viking, 1969).


Provenance

Owner City Country Date acquired
Johanna van Gogh-Bonger Amsterdam Netherlands  
Paul Cassirer Art Gallery Berlin Germany  
H. Kröller-Müller The Hague Netherlands August, 1912
Kröller-Müller Museum Otterlo Netherlands  


Exhibitions

Year City Country Venue Exhibition Name Start Date End Date No.
1908 Berlin (4) Germany Paul Cassirer  
  
  
 49
1908 Paris (1) France Galerie Bernheim-Jeune Cent tableaux de Vincent van Gogh 6 January 1908 1 February 1908 51
1908 Berlin (1) Germany Ausstellungshaus am Kurfürstendamm VII. Ausstellung 5 March 1908 22 March 1908 17
1908 Frankfurt Germany Frankfurter Kunstverein Vincent van Gogh Ausstellung 14 June 1908 28 June 1908 56
1908 Amsterdam Netherlands Kunstzalen C.M. van Gogh Vincent van Gogh tentoonstelling 3 September 1908 24 September 1908 45
1909 Munich Germany Moderne Kunsthandlung [F.J. Brakl] Vincent van Gogh [French Period]  
  
 27
1910 Dresden Germany Galerie Ernst Arnold Vincent van Gogh  
  
 ---
1910 Chemnitz Germany Kunstsalon Gerstenberger Vincent van Gogh  
  
 ---
1910 Frankfurt Germany Frankfurter Kunstverein Vincent van Gogh  
  
 ---
1910 Berlin (1) Germany Paul Cassirer Ausstellung Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 25 October 1910 20 November 1910 52
1911-12 Hamburg Germany Galerie Commeter  
 10 November 1911  
 18
1912 Breslau/Dresden Germany Galerie Ernst Arnold Ausstellung Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890  
  
 3
1912 Cologne Germany Städtische Ausstellungshalle am Aachener Tor Internationale Kunstausstellung des Sonderbundes Westdeutscher Kunstfreunde und Künstler zu Köln 25 May 1912 30 September 1912 56
1913 The Hague Netherlands Gebouw Lange Voorhout Werken van Vincent van Gogh 1 July 1913 1 September 1913 129
1914 Antwerp Belgium Zaal Comité voor Artistieke Werking L'art contemporain. Salon 1914 / Kunst van Heden, Tentoonstelling 1914 7 March 1914 5 April 1914 46
1927 Basel Switzerland Kunsthalle Vincent van Gogh. 143 Werke aus der Sammlung Kröller im Haag 18 June 1927 4 September 1927 101
1927 Bern Switzerland Kunsthalle Vincent van Gogh. 143 Werke aus der Sammlung Kröller im Haag 7 September 1927 17 October 1927 101
1927 Brussels Belgium Museum voor Moderne Kunst Vincent van Gogh. 140 werken uit de verzameling Kröller 5 November 1927 4 December 1927 101
1928 Düsseldorf Germany Städtische Kunsthalle Ausgewählte Kunstwerke aus der Sammlung Frau H. Kröller-Müller, Den Haag 1 August 1928 23 September 1928 168
1928 Karlsruhe Germany Badische Kunsthalle Vincent van Gogh. 150 Werke aus der Sammlung Kröller-Müller im Haag 30 September 1928 9 December 1928 103
1928-29 Berlin Germany National-Galerie Vincent van Gogh. 143 Werke aus dem Besitz von Frau Kröller-Müller im Haag 20 December 1928 28 February 1929 108
1929 Hamburg Germany Kunstverein Vincent van Gogh. Sammlung Kröller-Müller im Haag 14 March 1929 21 May 1929 58
1930 Amsterdam Netherlands Stedelijk Museum Vincent van Gogh en zijn tijdgenooten 6 September 1930 2 November 1930 230
1935-36 New York United States Museum of Modern Art Vincent van Gogh 5 November 1935 5 January 1936 58
1936 Philadelphia United States Philadelphia Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh 11 January 1936 10 February 1936 58
1936 Boston United States Museum of Fine Arts Vincent van Gogh 19 February 1936 15 March 1936 58
1936 Cleveland (1) United States Cleveland Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh 25 March 1936 19 April 1936 58
1936 San Francisco United States California Palace of the Legion of Honor Vincent van Gogh 28 April 1936 24 May 1936 58
1936 Kansas City United States William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Atkins Museum Vincent van Gogh 9 June 1936 10 July 1936 58
1936 Minneapolis United States Minneapolis Institute of Arts Vincent van Gogh 20 July 1936 17 August 1936 58
1936 Chicago United States Art Institute of Chicago Vincent van Gogh 26 August 1936 23 September 1936 58
1936 Detroit United States Detroit Institute of Arts Vincent van Gogh 6 October 1936 28 October 1936 58
1946 Liège Belgium Musée des Beaux-Arts Vincent van Gogh 12 October 1946 3 November 1946 116
1946 Brussels Belgium Palais des Beaux-Arts Vincent van Gogh 9 November 1946 19 December 1946 116
1946-47 Mons Belgium Musée des Beaux-Arts Vincent van Gogh 27 December 1946  
 116
1947 Paris (1) France Musée de l'Orangerie Vincent van Gogh 24 January 1947 15 March 1947 117
1947 Geneva Switzerland Musée Rath 172 oeuvres de Vincent van Gogh 22 March 1947 20 April 1947 117
1947 Basel Switzerland Kunsthalle Basel Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 11 October 1947 23 November 1947 67
1947-48 London United Kingdom Tate Gallery Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 10 December 1947 14 January 1948 52
1948 Birmingham United Kingdom City Art Gallery Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 24 January 1948 14 February 1948 52
1948 Glasgow Scotland Art Gallery Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 21 February 1948 14 March 1948 52
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 81
1950 Chicago United States Art Institute of Chicago Vincent van Gogh Paintings and Drawings. A Special Loan Exhibition 1 February 1950 16 April 1950 81
1950 Leiden Netherlands De Lakenhal Van Fantin Latour tot Picasso [from the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller] 14 October 1950 26 November 1950 22
1951 Enschede Netherlands Rijksmuseum Twenthe Van Fantin Latour tot Picasso [from the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller] 6 January 1951 11 February 1951 22
1951 Groningen Netherlands Museum voor Oudheden Van Fantin Latour tot Picasso [from the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller] 16 February 1951 11 March 1951 22
1951 Leeuwarden Netherlands Friesch Museum Van Fantin Latour tot Picasso [from the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller] 17 March 1951 8 April 1951 22
1952 Milan Italy Palazzo Reale Van Gogh. Dipinti e disegni 23 February 1952 13 May 1952 85
1953 The Hague Netherlands Haags Gemeentemuseum Vincent van Gogh 1853-1953 30 March 1953 17 May 1953 133
1953 Otterlo Netherlands Kröller-Müller Museum Eeuwfeest Vincent van Gogh 1853-1953 24 May 1953 19 July 1953 108
1953 Amsterdam Netherlands Stedelijk Museum Eeuwfeest Vincent van Gogh 23 July 1953 20 September 1953 108
1953 Saint Louis United States City Art Museum of Saint Louis Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 17 October 1953 13 December 1953 106
1954 Toledo United States Toledo Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 7 March 1953 30 April 1953 106
1954 Philadelphia United States Philadelphia Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 2 January 1954 28 February 1954 106
1956 Eindhoven Netherlands Stedelijk van Abbemuseum Vincent van Gogh from the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller 28 January 1956 12 March 1956 37
1957 Essen Germany Villa Hügel Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). Leben und Schaffen. Dokumentation Gemälde, Zeichnungen 16 October 1957 15 December 1957 304
1958 San Francisco United States M.H. de Young Memorial Museum Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings 6 October 1958 30 November 1958 48
1958-59 Los Angeles United States Los Angeles County Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings 10 December 1958 18 January 1959 48
1959 Portland United States Portland Art Museum Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings 28 January 1959 1 March 1959 48
1959 Seattle United States Seattle Art Museum Vincent van Gogh. Paintings and Drawings 7 March 1959 19 April 1959 48
1962 Warsaw Poland Muzeum Narodowe Vincent van Gogh. Obrazy i rysunki. Wystawa dziel ze zbiorow muzeow holenderskich 8 October 1962 18 October 1962 66
1962-63 Tel Aviv Israel Tel Aviv Museum Vincent van Gogh 30 December 1962 14 February 1963 76
1963 Haifa Israel Museum of Modern Art Vincent van Gogh 20 February 1963 20 March 1963 76
1966 Belgrade Yugoslavia Narodni Muzej Vincent van Gogh: Collection Kröller-Müller 30 October 1966 20 December 1966 67
1971 Moscow Russia Pushkin Museum Vincent van Gogh 15 April 1971 30 May 1971 76
1971 St. Petersburg Russia Hermitage Vincent van Gogh 13 June 1971 31 July 1971 76
1980 Mons Belgium Musée des Beaux-Arts Van Gogh et la Belgique 3 October 1980 30 November 1980 40
1984 New York United States Metropolitan Museum of Art Van Gogh in Arles 18 October 1984 30 December 1984 100
1985 Tokyo Japan National Museum of Western Art Vincent van Gogh 12 October 1985 8 December 1985 22
1985-86 Nagoya Japan Nagoya City Museum Vincent van Gogh 21 December 1985 2 February 1986 22
1986 Osaka Japan National Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh from Dutch Collections. Religion, Humanity, Nature 21 February 1986 31 March 1986 34
1988 Rome Italy Galleria Nationale d'Arte Moderna Vincent van Gogh 28 January 1988 4 April 1988 35
1989 Arles France Ancient Hôpital Van Gogh Van Gogh et Arles 18 January 1989 15 May 1989 28
1990 Amsterdam Netherlands Van Gogh Museum Vincent van Gogh. Schilderijen 30 March 1990 29 July 1990 57
1995-96 Yokohama Japan Yokohama Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh Collection from the Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo, The Netherlands 9 December 1995 11 February 1996 57
1996 Nagoya Japan City Art Museum Vincent van Gogh Collection from the Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo, The Netherlands 17 February 1996 22 March 1996 57
1999-2000 Tokyo Japan Bunkamura Museum of Art Vincent van Gogh from the Kröller-Müller Museum 19 November 1999 23 January 2000 58
2000 Fukuoka Japan Fukuoka Art Museum Vincent van Gogh from the Kröller-Müller Museum 1 February 2000 23 March 2000 58
2001 Saint Louis United States St. Louis Art Museum Vincent van Gogh and the Painters of the Petit Boulevard 17 February 2001 13 May 2001 ---
2001 Frankfurt Germany Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie Vincent van Gogh and the Painters of the Petit Boulevard 8 June 2001 2 September 2001 ---
2005 Tokyo Japan National Museum of Modern Art Van Gogh in Context 23 March 2005 22 May 2005  
2005 Osaka Japan National Museum of Modern Art Van Gogh in Context 31 May 2005 18 July 2005  
2005 Nagoya Japan Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art Van Gogh in Context 26 July 2005 25 September 2005  
2005-06 Brescia Italy Museo di Santa Giulia Gauguin-Van Gogh: The Adventure of the New Color 22 October 2005 26 March 2006 87

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