Christie’s to sell a nearly unknown double-sided painting by Van Gogh

A pair of little-known sketches made in the last weeks of Van Gogh’s life have been revealed. The double-sided sheet will go on sale at Christie’s in Paris on April 17th, with an estimated price of 100,000 to 150,000 euros.

These drawings were exhibited only once, in Argentina in 1959, for just one month. A very short article about these drawings was published in a catalog of Van Gogh’s work in 1970, but without the illustrations. The sketch was excluded from the 1980 Halsker catalogue. Now that they have finally appeared, their authenticity has been confirmed by the Van Gogh Museum.

The main side of the double-sided sheet depicts two groups of women bending over in a field picking peas. pea picker This work was painted by Van Gogh in Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris, from May 1890 until his death on July 29 of the same year. At that time, peas were grown in fields between the main road and the Oise River.

The scene that Van Gogh might have observed can be seen in a painting by the artist Charles Beauvery from some time ago. In 1876, he painted a woman picking beans in the same village. Another similar engraving of a bean-picking scene by Beauvery was made, and van Gogh may have been familiar with that engraving.

on the contrary pea picker is a landscape sketch depicting two rows of trees on either side of a field. Hills and clouds are in the background.

of pea picker The painting is inscribed by Van Gogh with six color designations, from “Vert Bleu” (green-blue) to “Jaune” (yellow). The word “purple” is written on the landscape behind the bean picker. These inscriptions indicate that Van Gogh intended to use his sketches as the basis for an oil painting.

No such painting exists. Van Gogh may not have started composing, or he may have abandoned it. It is also possible that he completed the painting but then lost it.

One oil painting that has a superficial resemblance to a landscape sketch is: Les Vesnos in Auvers (June 1890). This is certainly not drawn from a sketch, but could possibly represent the same area.

Christie’s double-sided painting was first acquired by Dr. Paul Gachet, who cared for Van Gogh during his stay in Auvers-sur-Oise and nursed him after he was shot in the chest. The doctor was either given the sketch by Van Gogh or obtained it shortly after Van Gogh’s death. Dr. Gachet appears to have displayed the sketch in his home along with other Van Gogh paintings he owned.

Dr. Gachet’s son, also called Paul, sold this double-sided painting in 1954. After spending time in a collection in Buenos Aires, it passed into the hands of a Spanish owner in 1990, whose descendants now sell it at Christie’s.

A total of 10 of Van Gogh’s Auvers-sur-Oise sketches have color annotations, but no oil paintings based on them are known to have survived.

The fact that Van Gogh painted these preparatory drawings for future paintings suggests that at this point he had no intention of ending his life. Unfortunately, it seems that these paintings were never realized.

Other Van Gogh news

van gogh painting Nuenen parsonage garden in spring (March 1884) was put on display again this week at the Groningen Museum in the north of the Netherlands after its recovery from theft. The painting was stolen on March 30, 2020 while on loan to the Singer Laren Museum. It was recovered in Amsterdam on September 11, 2023 and delivered in an IKEA bag.

The painting was restored before being re-exhibited this week. Two very small areas of loss at the bottom of the photo that were damaged during the theft have been filled in and retouched. The old discolored varnish was removed, brightening the painting.

Conservator Marjane de Wissel also discovered that the woman’s face in the center of the work had been radically altered by the addition of her features after the artist’s death. Van Gogh showed her (as he sometimes did) a blank, featureless face.

When the painting was exhibited at Rotterdam’s Oldenzeel Gallery in 1903, a mouth, nose, and eyes were added to the face, probably by the amateur artist Andrianus van Loon. This was probably done to increase the marketability of the photo. The painting is now on display again at the Groningen Museum in a form closer to Van Gogh’s intention.

Martin Bailey He is a leading Van Gogh expert and correspondent. art newspaper. He has curated exhibitions at the Barbican Art Gallery, Compton Burnie/National Gallery of Scotland and Tate Britain.

Martin has written numerous best-selling books about Van Gogh’s time in France. Sunflowers Are Mine: The Story of Van Gogh’s Masterpiece (Frances Lincoln, 2013, UK and the usa), South Studio: Van Gogh in Provence (Frances Lincoln, 2016, UK) and the usa), Starry Night: Van Gogh in the Asylum (White Lion Publishing 2018, UK) and the usa) and Van Gogh’s Finale: Auvers and the Artist’s Rise to Fame (Frances Lincoln, 2021, UK) and the usa). sunflowers are mine (2024, UK and the usa) and Van Gogh’s Finale (2024, England and the usa) is now also available in a more compact paperback format.

His other recent books include: Living with Vincent van Gogh: The homes and landscapes that shaped Van Gogh (White Lion Publishing 2019, UK and the usa), provides an overview of the artist’s life. Van Gogh’s Provence character illustration has been republished (Batsford 2021, UK) and the usa). My friend Van Gogh/Emile Bernard Provides the first English translation of Bernard’s work on Van Gogh (David Zwirner Books 2023, UK)and the usa).

To contact Martin Bailey, email vangogh@theartnewspaper.com.

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See all of Martin and Van Gogh’s adventures here