After more than 130 years, all 15 of Vincent van Gogh’s olive grove paintings are on display together in one exhibition for the first time.
“This is unique”, Van Gogh Museum Director Emilie Gordenker said on Wednesday in Amsterdam. “These wonderful paintings show van Gogh’s love for nature and his belief in consolation through art.”
The painter himself counted these works among the best and most important from his time in southern France.
The Dutch artist (1853-90) painted the olive groves during his stay in the psychiatric hospital in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence in 1889. He suffered from depression and was probably in a severe psychosis.
“During this difficult time for him, he found comfort and support in nature”, said curator Nienke Bakker. Olive trees were also a symbol of resilience for him.
There were many olive trees around the hospital. The painter was fascinated by their bony trunks, their colours, and the effect of the sunlight on the blue-grey leaves. “Olive trees are very characteristic and I make every effort to get a grip on them”, he wrote to his brother Theo.
Van Gogh painted the trees from different perspectives, at different times of the year and day. Some were done in the studio, many in the field. He experimented with colours, shapes and techniques.
The olive grove paintings first came into the possession of his brother Theo after the painter’s death. Today they are in 11 collections, mainly in Europe and the US. According to the museum, they are rarely or never loaned out.
They are scheduled to be on show in Amsterdam from March 11 to June12. — dpa
