IDENTITY
Letter 783 — Lead-White Impasto & Layering
Saint-Rémy, 1889
Content Summary
On 25 June 1889 at Saint-Rémy, Van Gogh describes the foregrounds of two cypress studies as worked with thick impastos of lead white to give firmness to the ground, with other colours placed over them.
CONTEXT
Topics
Lead White, Impasto, Layering, Paint Handling, Cypresses, Surface Construction
Materials & Pigments
Lead white
Related People
Vincent van Gogh, Theo van Gogh
Paintings
Cypress studies
RESEARCH
Quotation
Research Focus
The passage shows lead white serving a structural role in Van Gogh’s paint construction: a thick, firm impasto could establish the foreground before subsequent colours were worked over it, linking pigment choice directly to layering and surface handling.
Related Work / Relevance
SOURCES & EVIDENCE
Source Type
Letter
Source
Source Edition
Vincent van Gogh — The Letters, scholarly online edition (Van Gogh Museum / Huygens ING)
Source URL
Evidence Type
Primary Source
Related Readings