IDENTITY

Letter RM25 — Artistic Ethos

Auvers, 1890

Content Summary

On 23 July 1890 at Auvers, Van Gogh states that paintings must be able to 'speak' through their own pictorial presence.

CONTEXT

Topics

Artistic Ethos, Paintings must 'speak'

Materials & Pigments

Related People

Vincent van Gogh

Paintings

RESEARCH

Quotation

Research Focus

The statement condenses Van Gogh’s belief in the expressive autonomy of painting: a work should communicate through what it has become visually rather than depend on external explanation.

Related Work / Relevance

SOURCES & EVIDENCE

Source Type

Letter

Source

Letter RM25 (old 907)

Source Edition

Vincent van Gogh — The Letters, scholarly online edition (Van Gogh Museum / Huygens ING)

Source URL

https://vangoghletters.org/vg/letters/RM25/letter.html

Evidence Type

Primary Source