polity french third republicconcept:era modern
Almond Blossom
Oil on canvas (1890) by Vincent van Gogh, depicting blossoming almond branches against a blue sky. Painted as a gift for his brother Theo's newborn son Vincent Willem. Held at the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam.
Scholarly Significance
Van Gogh's gift for his newborn nephew; explicitly Japoniste in composition and mood.
Notes
- ·Painted February 1890 to celebrate the birth of Theo's son, who was named Vincent Willem after his uncle.
- ·Van Gogh wrote to his mother: 'You can easily imagine that I am thinking of him a lot. He will sleep in a room hung with the picture of the almond blossom.'
- ·The composition of almond branches against blue sky is directly influenced by Japanese woodblock prints (Hiroshige, Hasui).
- ·The painting remained in the Van Gogh family; donated to the museum by Vincent Willem van Gogh in 1962.
- ·One of the most beloved works in the Van Gogh Museum collection.