Director's foreword
The Van Gogh Museum mounts around six exhibitions every year, covering a wide range of subjects from the history of 19th and early 20th-century art. Many of these are international collaborations with partner museums, often involving loans from across the world. Yet, even for an institution accustomed to mounting large, temporary exhibitions, the show devoted to Van Gogh and Gauguin (The Art Institute of Chicago, 22 September 2001-13 January 2002, Van Gogh Museum, 9 February-2 June 2002) was of an order that fell far beyond the boundaries of our normal experience. In part this was because of the sheer scale of the enterprise and the various logistical challenges presented by this particular undertaking. It was also because the response from the public was almost overwhelming. Over a period of five months, some 739,000 visitors came to see Van Gogh and Gauguin in Amsterdam, making it the busiest art exhibition anywhere in the world in that year. But in the end it was the visual and emotional impact of this encounter between two great yet opposing talents that created an extraordinary show. From the beginnings of their first awareness of each other's art in the 1880s, through the brief but frenetic period when they were together in Arles in 1888, and then on to the end of their careers, the interaction between the two painters was revealed and analysed. Through series and combinations of some of their finest works, it was possible to follow each turn in this compelling relationship, a human and artistic story that was to have far-reaching consequences not just for the men involved, but also for the entire course of modern art.
The works of art have now been returned to their various owners but we have a lasting reminder of this project in the superb catalogue by Douglas W. Druick and Peter Kort Zegers. In this volume of the Van Gogh Museum Journal we provide yet another record of the research related to the exhibition. In March 2002 the Van Gogh Museum hosted an international symposium devoted to Van Gogh and Gauguin (described below by Chris Stolwijk). Seven of the papers given at the time are published here. Whilst we cannot reproduce the crackle of debate and lively discussion generated by the event, the articles provide a view of some of the many and varied issues that are raised by the individual careers of Van Gogh and Gauguin, as well as by their artistic friendship and rivalry.
As in previous years, this Journal also includes articles under the rubric ‘Van Gogh studies.’ Of particular interest is the discovery of a previously unknown letter written by Vincent to the dealer H.G Tersteeg in August 1877, a document that is a rare and precious survivor from what must have been an extensive correspondence. Also in line with previous editions, we present a survey of the acquisitions made by the Van Gogh Museum in the past year. We are especially delighted to document the addition of one of Gustave Caillebotte's most intriguing paintings to the museum's collection. In a letter to the museum, the late Kirk Varnedoe described Caillebotte's View from a balcony quite simply as ‘an incredibly beautiful and important work,’ and we are happy to agree with this assessment.
I would like to thank all the authors for their contributions. I would like to thank especially the Managing editor, Rachel Esner, our Head of Research, Chris Stolwijk, Fieke Pabst, the museum's documentalist, and our Head of publications Suzanne Bogman for all their efforts in bringing together this volume of the Van Gogh Museum Journal.
John Leighton
Director
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