5x Van Gogh’s Almond Blossom
Five things you need to know about Vincent van Gogh's masterpiece.
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Van Gogh painted one of his favourite subjects
Vincent loved nature. Blossoming trees, like in the painting Almond Blossom, were one of his favourite subjects to paint. He painted a number of variations on the theme: ranging from a small flowering sprig in a glass to lavishly blossoming trees.
Almond trees flower early in spring. The tree therefore marks the arrival of spring and the start of new life. And that was very appropriate in this case, as Vincent didn’t paint this work for just any old reason…
Vincent van Gogh, Bloeiend amandeltakje in een glas, 1888
Vincent van Gogh, De roze boomgaard, 1888
Vincent van Gogh, Bloeiende boomgaarden, gezicht op Arles, 1889
Van Gogh made this painting as a gift
The painting was a gift for Vincent’s newborn nephew. The boy was born on 31 January 1890, and Theo and his wife Jo named him Vincent, after his uncle. Van Gogh was delighted to hear the news: ‘It does me, too, more good and gives me more pleasure than I could express in words’.
He started work on this painting straight away. He painted the blue sky very precisely around the branches. If you look closely, you can see how many different shades of blue he used, just like in a real-life sky.
Vincent van Gogh, Almond Blossom, 1890
The painting is one of the Van Gogh family’s most cherished
The painting became a treasured possession as soon as Vincent presented it to Theo and Jo as a gift. At first, it hung prominently above the piano in Theo and Jo’s living room. Later, once Jo had moved to Bussum following Theo’s death, the work hung in her and her son Vincent’s bedroom.
Following the death of Vincent and Theo, all of Vincent’s paintings passed into Jo’s hands. She sold a number of works during her lifetime, but Almond Blossom was so precious to Jo and her son that it was never to be sold. And that’s why to this very day, it is on display at the Van Gogh Museum.
Jo Bonger in her living room with her son Vincent (on the left) and her second husband Johan (on the right), surrounded by paintings of Vincent van Gogh, 1910-1911.
Vincent (Theo and Jo's son) at the opening of the Van Gogh Museum in 1973.
Van Gogh made this painting during a special period in his life
For Van Gogh, painting Almond Blossom signified a new start. At the time, he had already been at an asylum in Saint-Rémy for almost ten months. Due to an attack of his illness, Vincent had not worked for weeks. He was now allowed back outside to paint, surrounded by nature.
Vincent worked hard, but that cost him dearly. Once he had completed the painting at the end of February, he had an attack that lasted for two months; his longest ever crisis. Once he had recovered, a new disappointment awaited: Vincent had missed his beloved flowering season.
‘If I’d been able to continue working, […] I would have done others of the trees in blossom. Now the trees in blossom are almost finished, […] I have no luck’.
Vincent van Gogh, Raam in het atelier, 1889
For the painting, Van Gogh was inspired by Japanese prints
Vincent chose an unusual perspective for Almond Blossom. He painted the branches from below and very close up. It is as if you are lying on your back on the grass, looking up at the branches above you, so that you can no longer see the entire tree. Vincent had seen this approach in Japanese printmaking and was inspired by it. These prints often zoom in on details from nature, and the image was sometimes cropped.
The subject itself also feels very Japanese, as blossom played a significant role in Japanese printmaking. Watch the video to see what else Van Gogh learned from Japanese prints.
Looking at Japanese art: what did Vincent learn from Japanese printmaking?