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''Van Gogh's Chair'' is a painting created in 1888 by Dutch artist
''Van Gogh's Chair'' is a product of the artist's tumultuous time spent with fellow painter
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade, he created approximately 2,100 artworks ...
. It is currently held by the National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current dire ...
.
The painting shows a rustic wooden chair, with a simple woven straw seat, on a tiled floor. On the chair seat is a decorated pipe and a pouch of pipe tobacco. In the background is an onion box with Van Gogh's name on it. It has become one of Van Gogh's most iconic images, to the extent that Van Gogh's cataloger Jan Hulsker
Jan Hulsker (2 October 1907, The Hague – 9 November 2002, Vancouver) was a Dutch art historian especially noted for his work on Vincent van Gogh. He studied Dutch literature in Leiden and was promoted with a thesis on the author Aart van der Lee ...
noted that "there are few pictures of Vincent's about which so much was written in later years."
Background
On 7 May 1888 Van Gogh moved from the Hôtel Carrel to the Café de la Gare, atArles
Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and Communes of France, commune in the South of France, a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Reg ...
, in the south of France. He had befriended the proprietors, Joseph and Marie Ginoux. The Yellow House, at 2 place Lamartine, had to be furnished before he could fully move in, but he was able to use it as a studio. He wanted a gallery to display his work, and started a series of paintings that eventually included ''Van Gogh's Chair'' (1888), '' Bedroom in Arles'' (1888), '' The Night Café'' (1888), '' Cafe Terrace at Night'' (September 1888), ''Starry Night Over the Rhone Starry may refer to:
* Starry (drink), a beverage sold by PepsiCo
* ''Starry'' (The Killjoys album), 1994
* ''Starry'' (Purr Machine album), 2007
* Donn A. Starry (1925–2011), United States Army general
* Starry Lee (born 1974), Hong Kong polit ...
'' (1888), and '' Still Life: Vase with Twelve Sunflowers'' (1888), all intended for the decoration for the Yellow House.
Description
''Van Gogh's Chair'' is a product of the artist's tumultuous time spent with fellow painter Paul Gauguin
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramist, and writer, whose work has been primarily associated with the Post-Impressionist and Symbolist movements. He was also an influ ...
. Both this work and its pendant piece ''Paul Gauguin's Armchair'' are painted in complementary colours, blue and orange for van Gogh, red and green for Gauguin. The two paintings were painted before Van Gogh cut off his ear, but continued to be refined after he was hospitalised. Van Gogh set out to "in these two studies, as in others, I myself sought an effect of light with bright colour"
Analysis
The contrasts between ''Van Gogh's Chair'' and ''Paul Gauguin's Armchair'' have led to much analysis of the symbolism of these two paintings. While Van Gogh's chair is simple and unpretentious, Gauguin's is far more lavish and ornate. This has been interpreted in light of Van Gogh and Gauguin's tempestuous relationship.See also
* List of works by Vincent van Gogh * Décoration for the Yellow HouseReferences
Sources
* * * * * Paintings by Vincent van Gogh 1888 paintings Oil on canvas paintings Paintings in the National Gallery, London Chairs Straw objects {{1880s-painting-stub