Vincent van Gogh’s Turning Points: Van Gogh and the Asylum at Saint-Rémy

Vincent van Gogh, Irises, May 1889. Oil on canvas. J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles — Vincent van Gogh, *Irises*, May 1889. Oil on canvas. J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

After suffering a manic episode in Arles, van Gogh was hospitalized in the spring of 1889 and then voluntarily committed to a nearby sanitarium for one year. There his view of the world was mostly confined to the garden and the panorama out his window. This lecture examines how, in spite of these limits and several relapses, he was able to paint some of his most visionary landscapes, his most moving portraits, and many studies after other artists, in particular Jean-François Millet.

Generously sponsored by the John Walsh Lecture and Education Fund and the Martin A. Ryerson Lectureship Fund.

Note: This lecture is the fifth in the series Vincent van Gogh’s Turning Points. All lectures are held in the Robert L. McNeil, Jr., Lecture Hall. Seating is limited. Doors open one hour prior to each lecture. Free tickets to the lecture are handed out in the lobby beginning one hour prior; ticket holders are guaranteed a seat.