White almond blossoms open against a clear blue sky, their branches criss-crossing. Van Gogh painted it to celebrate the birth of his nephew and gave it to his brother Theo's family to hang in their bedroom. It is one of his tenderest, most hopeful works.
Key facts
- Artist
- Vincent van Gogh1853–1890 · Dutch
- Date
- February 1890
- Period
- Post-Impressionism1886–1905
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 73.3 × 92.4 cm
- Location
- Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam, Netherlands
Actual size
Compared with an adult 170 cm tall
Palette
#80A6A7#6B979C#5D7D70#B3C9BABackground
On 31 January 1890 Theo and his wife Jo had a son, whom they named Vincent Willem after his uncle. Van Gogh, still in the asylum at Saint-Rémy, was delighted by the news and painted these almond blossoms as a gift.
The almond is one of the first trees to bloom in southern France, flowering in early spring as a herald of new life. Van Gogh wrote to his mother that he had painted for the baby “large branches of white almond blossom against a blue sky” to hang in their bedroom.
Soon after finishing it, Van Gogh suffered another attack and could not paint for weeks. The painting stayed with the family and is now in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Technique & composition
There is no horizon and no whole trunk; we seem to lie beneath the tree looking up. enter from the bottom edge and fill the upper part — a composition clearly shaped by Japanese prints and screens.
Van Gogh outlined the branches in dark colour and set them against , close to the technique of Japanese woodblocks. Compared with the turbulent brushwork of his other works of the time, the handling here is delicate and calm, the colours fresh and soft.
Details
Symbolism
New life
Almond blossom opening in early spring symbolises the baby's birth and hope. Suffering in the asylum, Van Gogh poured all his blessings for new life into this picture.
A dream of Japan
Van Gogh saw the south of France as his “Japan”, longing for the bright, peaceful world of ukiyo-e prints. This painting is the purest expression of his .
Stories
- Did you know?
The baby, Vincent Willem, grew up to be an engineer and was instrumental in setting up the Vincent van Gogh Foundation. The Van Gogh Museum, opened in 1973, was built around the collection of his uncle's works that he had inherited.
- Did you know?
Today it is one of the most popular works in the Van Gogh Museum, and its pattern appears on countless postcards, umbrellas, phone cases and souvenirs.
Legacy
Almond Blossom shows that Van Gogh could create serene, hopeful work even in adversity, overturning the stereotype that he painted only turbulent emotion. It is also one of the loveliest examples of artistic exchange between East and West.
