When Van Gogh arrived in Paris in February 1886, his aesthetic was still guided principally by seventeenth-century Dutch Old Masters and French landscape painters of the Barbizon School. His brother, Theo, an art dealer in Paris, had been urging him for some time to introduce more light and colour into his work. Once in France, Van Gogh achieved this. In May 1890 Van Gogh moved to Auvers, north-west of the capital, at the recommendation of Pissarro. Auvers was favoured by artists he admired and was also home to Dr Paul Gachet, described by Pissarro to Theo as ‘a man who has been in touch with all the Impressionists’.
Vincent van Gogh
Dutch (worked in France) 1853–90
Houses at Auvers 1890 (detail)
oil on canvas
75.6 x 61.9 cm
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Bequest of John T. Spaulding (48.549)
© 2025 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Reproduced with permission. All Rights Reserved.
