Director's foreword
In 2003 the Van Gogh Museum will have been in existence for 30 years. Our museum is thus still a relative newcomer on the international scene. Nonetheless, in this fairly short period, the Van Gogh Museum has established itself as one of the liveliest institutions of its kind, with a growing reputation for its collections, exhibitions and research programmes. The past year has been marked by particular success: the Van Gogh and Gauguin exhibition attracted record numbers of visitors to its Amsterdam venue. And in this Journal we publish our latest acquisitions, including Manet's The jetty at Boulogne-sur-mer, the first important work by this artist to enter any Dutch public collection.
By a happy coincidence, our 30th anniversary coincides with the 150th of the birth of Vincent van Gogh. As we approach this milestone it seemed to us a good moment to reflect on the current state of Van Gogh studies. For this issue of the Journal we asked a number of experts to look back on the most significant developments in Van Gogh research since the last major anniversary in 1990, the centenary of the artist's death. Our authors were asked to filter a mass of published material in differing areas, from exhibition publications to writings about fakes and forgeries. To complement this, we also invited a number of specialists to write a short piece on one picture from our collection, an exercise that is intended to evoke the variety and resourcefulness of current writing on Van Gogh.
The picture we offer in this publication, however, is far from complete. For example, we have not provided a detailed account of technical research into Van Gogh's paintings, a line of enquiry that has become increasingly important in recent years, providing insights into the way the artist worked and helping to clarify issues of authenticity. Nevertheless, our survey suggests that interest in Van Gogh remains not only undiminished but has even intensified since 1990. It is also possible to identify a number of trends. It would appear, for example, that scholars are paying more attention to the original source material, striving for greater accuracy as the details of the artist's life and his oeuvre are pieced together. At the same time, there is an increasing focus on the context in which Van Gogh worked and on studying the development of his art in relation to his contemporaries. The Van Gogh and Gauguin exhibition is just one prominent example of this.
As with so many fields of research, the more new information that comes to light on Van Gogh, the more one becomes aware of the gaps in our knowledge. It is clear that there is work enough to keep us busy far beyond the next 30-year period. The Van Gogh Museum intends to continue to play a key role in research on Van Gogh, through its own projects and offering opportunities, such as this publication, to stimulate the work of outside specialists. This edition of the Journal, then, is not just a tribute to an artist whose work remains alive and provocative a century and a half after his birth, but also to all those scholars who have dedicated their time and energy over the years to evolving a closer understanding of his art.
This year, the format of the Journal has been altered slightly, in that there is no introduction reporting on the previous year's activities at the Van Gogh Museum. From 2004 this summary will appear in a separate publication, our new annual report. Please contact the editors should you wish to receive a copy.
John Leighton
Director
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