Vincent van Gogh left Paris for Arles in 1888, seeking a pause and solace in a rural setting. For this reason, the sun-drenched town in southern France appealed to the artist and enchanted him with its vibrant wheat fields, olive groves, and bright blue skies. Van Gogh spent 15 months in Arles, painting 200+ genius canvases, including The Yellow House and Café Terrace at Night, in this amazing place.

The Magic of Provençal Landscape

The main source of van Gogh’s creative stimulation in Arles was the vibrancy of colors and the abundance of visually appealing landscapes and objects. The artist characterized the place as so intensely lit by sunlight that objects seemed to radiate light, even when they were hidden in the shadow. Van Gogh reflected that luminosity in many art pieces, such as The Sower (1888). The color intensity observed in Arles was also reflected in the change in van Gogh’s painting style, with greater use of bold contrasts and textured brushstrokes.

Artist Community Ambitions of Vincent Van Gogh

Though the enchanting scenery of Arles was a strong reason for the artist’s temporary move to this province, van Gogh also cherished other dreams and ambitions about this event. His plan was to set up a “Studio of the South,” a collaborative society of artists. For this purpose, he rented and decorated a house in Arles, which had to become the heart of his artist community.

The main hopes were associated with Paul Gauguin, whom van Gogh convinced to join him on the trip to Arles in 1888. Things went smoothly at first, but the emotional temperament of van Gogh contradicted Gauguin’s calculated reasonableness. Despite the doomed relationship, van Gogh created his world-famous Sunflowers series (1988), which was meant to decorate Gauguin’s room in the Yellow House.

Creative Evolution of Van Gogh’s Style in Arles

Van Gogh’s style changed profoundly during his stay in Arles, with expressionism starting to prevail over realism. Swirling brushwork, deep symbolism, and bold color combinations entered his works, and the inspiration he drew from Japanese woodblock prints led to the emergence of simplified, flattened forms in his canvases.

Unfortunately, the Arles period was not only a remarkable creative burst for Vincent van Gogh but also a turning point in his deteriorating mental health. The painter experienced lots of personal turmoil during his stay in Arles, with his dreams of the long, glorious artist life shrinking due to mental illness. The analysis of van Gogh’s paintings, personal letters, and the evolution of his painting style can shed more light on this important, though tragic, period of the artist’s life and creativity.