Van Gogh's life

The paint was still wet: a closer look at three Van Gogh paintings heading to the Rijksmuseum

They include an Amsterdam townscape painted an hour or so before the artist visited the newly opened museum in 1885

'One of my great heroes': A new book on Francis Bacon sheds light on his admiration for Van Gogh

Bacon believed the Dutch artist deformed reality “to make it more real”

Van Gogh’s 'Night Café': a haunt of prowlers, not a brothel

Vincent felt that the café he painted was where you could “ruin yourself, go mad, commit crimes”

A concise guide to Van Gogh’s adult life: how the artist celebrated his birthday over the years

From family gifts of cufflinks and chocolate to his darker days in the asylum, a look at where Vincent was and what he was doing on 30 March each year

How Van Gogh’s ‘Bedroom’ paved the way to Modern art

Tate’s show on Expressionism reminds us that Vincent was “the father of us all”

Van Gogh’s self-portraits: what do they really reveal?

An exhibition at London’s Courtauld Gallery will be the most comprehensive ever held of Vincent's paintings of himself

Van Gogh’s unknown period: his life in a remote Dutch heathland region

A new study and a 2023 exhibition will reveal how Vincent’s art developed in Drenthe—an escape from city life and his lover Sien

The most famous bedroom in art history: secrets of Van Gogh’s nocturnal life

A story of changing wall colours, a pair of pillows, wartime bombs and the hunt for a lost bed

In a moving letter, Van Gogh complains about quarantine after his forced removal from the Yellow House

New exhibition at Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum is a unique opportunity to see Vincent’s correspondence, normally locked away in a vault

Van Gogh’s trusty pipe: how the artist believed that smoking helped his art

Vincent lay in bed, puffing away and dreamily composing his pictures

Van Gogh experienced lockdown—how did isolation impact on his art?

The artist once told his sister that isolation was “sometimes as hard to bear as exile”—but was necessary “if we want to work”

Methodical, well read and—above all—human: what we learn from the myth-busting edition of Van Gogh’s letters

A decade after the publication of Vincent's trove of correspondence, here is how the remarkable project has contributed to scholarship on his art

Mistaken identity: new discovery means there is only one known photograph of Vincent van Gogh

The childhood image that was assumed to be of Vincent is now believed to depict his brother Theo

Suicide or murder?

Ten myths about Vincent van Gogh

Why stories—from the mutilated ear to the eventual suicide—can distort our view of the art

Van Gogh: it was suicide, not murder

Julian Schnabel’s new film on Van Gogh is based on questionable assumptions

Van Gogh's suicide: Ten reasons why the murder story is a myth

All the evidence suggests it was the artist who fired the fatal shot

I held the gun that probably killed Van Gogh—and here is its story

The revolver discovered by a farmer in an Auvers field comes up for auction on 19 June

Van Gogh's ear

Did Van Gogh cut off his whole ear? Or only a part?

Key witnesses had different memories, so sorting out myth and reality is a challenge—but the truth would give valuable insight into the artist’s psyche

Gauguin blames Van Gogh over ear incident

Little known letter says he feared “a fatal and tragic accident” in the Yellow House

Fake or the real deal?

Four fake Van Gogh self-portraits that publishers put on their book covers

These works deceive readers, giving a false impression about the artist

Nine Van Gogh 'fakes' that have emerged as the real thing

The Oslo self-portrait and other paintings have been authenticated by the artist’s museum

Two Van Gogh fakes in Washington? Strong evidence produced against early drawings at the National Gallery of Art

Revelations in new book about an attic discovery throw fresh light on Vincent’s decision to become an artist

Not a fake: Van Gogh self-portrait is his only work painted while suffering psychosis, experts say

The newly attributed work is quite unlike Van Gogh’s other 35 self-portraits and reveals an intriguing insight into his mutilated ear

A good catch: The Mackerels now looks set to be authenticated as a genuine Van Gogh

The still life in Switzerland’s Reinhart collection was dismissed as a forgery

Fake no more: poppy painting in US museum is by Van Gogh—and has a surprise under the surface

Still life at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut, is authenticated after decades hidden in storage

Podcasts

Top of the Pods: experts on Van Gogh in the asylum and his early life

We bring together our interviews with Martin Bailey and Martin Gayford who discuss the turbulent life and longstanding legacy of the Dutch painter. Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, Aimee Dawson and David Clack

The Van Gogh Sunflowers lawsuit: the full story behind the Nazi-loot claim to Tokyo’s $250m painting

Plus, Singapore’s art hub ambitions and Grace Lau's project for Chinese New Year

Hosted by Ben Luke. With guest speakers Martin Bailey and Georgina Adam. Produced by David Clack and Aimee Dawson
Sponsored byChristie's

Van Gogh in the asylum. Plus, Christian Marclay on The Clock

Our correspondent Martin Bailey and art historian Martin Gayford talk about Van Gogh's time at the asylum of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole and Christian Marclay tells us about his ground-breaking work The Clock. Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, David Clack and Aimee Dawson

The best of the Venice Biennale: our critics’ review

Plus, artists Francis Alÿs, Sonia Boyce, Shubigi Rao and Na Chainkua Reindorf on their national pavilion shows; and a Bellini masterpiece

Hosted by Ben Luke. with guest speakers Louisa Buck and Jane Morris. Produced by Julia Michalska, David. Clack, Aimee Dawson and Henrietta Bentall
Sponsored byChristie's