'A Japanese dream'
Field with Irises near Arles
Van Gogh divided this painting into large areas of colour. He was enchanted by the colours in the landscape. He especially loved the fields of yellow and purple flowers:
A meadow full of very yellow buttercups, a ditch with iris plants with green leaves, with purple flowers, the town in the background, some grey willow trees — a strip of blue sky.
Letter to Theo van Gogh. Arles, Saturday, 12 May 1888
When Vincent wrote to his brother Theo, he illustrated his words with a picture. He included a small 'letter sketch' in which he noted down the most important colours (blue, green yellow and purple).
Japanese composition elements
The landscape around Arles reminded Van Gogh of the world that he knew from his collection of Japanese prints. Japanese artists included large areas of colour in their compositions and often had sharp diagonals. They also frequently zoomed in on foreground details. Van Gogh adopted these elements in his painting. ‘That would really be a Japanese dream, you know’, he wrote to Theo.
Letter to Theo van Gogh. Arles, 12 May 1888.
Japanese print from Van Gogh’s own collection.
Anonymous artist, A modern Narihira, central sheet of a triptych, late 19th century
Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
