Vincent van Gogh – Oleanders Metropolitan Museum: part 2

Description of Vincent van Gogh’s painting The Oleander

The famous French post-impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh was not at all popular during his lifetime. More than a century later, however, his works are recognized as some of the most expensive works of modern art. Today they adorn the halls of various museums and galleries.

One of the most popular themes in the artist’s work were flowers. Among them roses and zinnias, carnations and daisies, irises and cornflowers, acacias and chestnuts, and oleanders. The artist began to pay particular attention to flowers after he moved to Paris.

Van Gogh regularly painted flora, maximizing the diversity of color on the canvas. It is thanks to this that his still lifes stand out from others for their picturesqueness. In his works, flowers have become a reflection of the beauty of the world around him, so often inspiring the creator.

In this painting, Van Gogh captured forever the beautiful oleanders perched in a vase. Their large, heavy branches take up the largest portion of the entire composition. And in the lower left corner the painter placed two bright yellow covers. Most likely Van Gogh wanted to recall the popular French novels he was fond of.

Van Gogh plays with contrast and bright color differences. The colors in the painting look particularly clean and deep, and the contrasts harmonize with each other.

The light pink buds appear to be flame spots against a backdrop of lettuce wall flowers. Certain details of the painting bear a resemblance to Japanese prints. This canvas radiates optimism and joy from contemplating the composition.