"Street in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer," Vincent van Gogh, 1888.

Y'all know Van Gogh.

He painted this in June of 1888, when he was living in the town of Arles, but spent a few days in this Mediterranean fishing village. This isn't a really accurate depiction...while in form it's a faithful rendition (there are sketches of this very scene among his papers), the actual colors were added back in the studio. He was having a bit of fun here.

Van Gogh was very happy and optimistic at this time of his life; in Arles he was producing some of his best work, and his friend Gauguin was about to come visit, which was an important event in his life. The colors he uses are reflective of his overall mood; the yellows and blues are typical of his "up" paintings.

Sadly, it would only be a few months before he'd have a mental health crisis and required hospitalization. One wishes he could have had a more stable psyche...but would his art be as brilliant?

From a private collection.

#Art #VincentVanGogh #PostImpressionism #VillageScene

"Small Table in Evening Dusk," Henri le Sidaner, 1921.

Le Sidaner (1862-1939) was a Post-Impressionist painter who is today classed as an "Intimist," specializing in quiet interiors and serene street scenes like this one. Recently-abandoned tables were a favorite subject, as were gardens and domestic scenes.

He often used a Pointillist technique, which I usually find annoying, but here it gives the scene a misty, dreamlike air. It almost verges on being too pretty, but the use of subdued colors (Le Sidaner disliked using primaries) gives is a cool, sort of detached air.

Le Sidaner is hard to characterize as being part of any one art movement; one critic called his work "art of silence" which is a pretty good description. The serenity of this scene is enviable; one wishes to be sitting down at that table with a friend and looking out over the water...

From the Ohara Museum of Art, Kurashiki, Japan.

#Art #HenriLeSidaner #Pointillism #PostImpressionism #Intimism #ArtOfSilence #Quiet

"Portrait of Joseph Roulin," Vincent van Gogh, 1889.

Y'all know Van Gogh by now.

Joseph Roulin was a postal worker in the town of Arles, where Van Gogh had gone in hopes of forming an art colony. It never manifested, but he became close friends with his postman, Roulin, and the entire Roulin family became a huge source of emotional and moral support to the troubled artist.

Roulin was, by all accounts, one of those great people who was not only a devoted family man, but also a generally kind person who was always willing to lend a hand to those in need. Van Gogh was always struck by his features and overall air of kindliness, which comes across a little in this portrait; despite the large beard, he seems about to smile.

When Van Gogh was hospitalized (1888-90, on and off), Roulin looked after his studio and was a regular visitor. Some feel that Van Gogh's psychiatric troubles may have been far worse if not for the presence of his caring friend.

Here we have Roulin proud in his postal uniform, looking a bit amused, but also strong and solid. The background, of bright green and twisting vines and flowers, seems almost to embrace the subject.

Happy Portrait Monday!

From the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

#Art #VincentVanGogh #PortraitMonday #PostImpressionism

The House and the Tree

painting by Paul Cezanne, 1874

26 x 22 inches

kept in private collection

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Paul_C%C3%A9zanne

#art #painting #cezanne #postimpressionism

"Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase," Vincent van Gogh, 1890.

Thought I'd post some art early today; going off to a concert tonight!

Y'all know Van Gogh. This painting is a bit of a mystery to art historians. He never mentioned it in his letters, and he talked about nearly everything he did in those letters. The bouquet of summer flowers is similar to work he did in Paris, while the vase is the same used in a painting of irises during his time in Saint-Remy, in southern France. But the style and brushstrokes point to this being painted in the weeks leading up to his death in 1890.

Happy Flower Friday!

From the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

#Art #VincentVanGogh #FlowerFriday #PostImpressionism

On Reflection: Cézanne

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://eclecticlight.co/2026/04/15/on-reflection-cezanne/

"The Sower," Vincent van Gogh, 1888.

Y'all know van Gogh.

In 1888 he was living in Arles and having his breakthrough success as an artist. This scene is a riff on an artist he admired, Jean-Francois Millet, who had done a similar painting of a sower.

Here, we have the man boldly striding across the plowed field, scattering seeds. But in the background, we see the sun rising over fully grown grain. This painting isn't supposed to be a realistic landscape, but a circle-of-life allegory, a religious scene of the sower of divine will planting the seeds of salvation.

Van Gogh's mental health would decline and in a few months he was hospitalized; I wonder if this painting was an expression of a troubled soul seeking some form of salvation or rescue.

From the Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo.

#Art #VincentVanGogh #PostImpressionism #Allegory