Van Gogh in America concludes its Detroit run on Jan. 22

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Self Portrait,’ 1887. Oil on artist board mounted to wood panel; 13 ¾ by 10 ½in (34.9 by 26.7cm). Detroit Institute of Arts, City of Detroit Purchase, 22.13


Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Self Portrait,’ 1887. Oil on artist board mounted to wood panel; 13 ¾ by 10 ½in (34.9 by 26.7cm). Detroit Institute of Arts, City of Detroit Purchase, 22.13

DETROIT – On the centenary of its status as the first public museum in the United States to purchase a painting by Vincent van Gogh, the Detroit Institute of Arts presents a landmark exhibition that tells the story of the artist’s rise to prominence among American audiences. Van Gogh in America features 74 original paintings, drawings, and prints by the Dutch Post-Impressionist artist, and will continue through January 22, 2023. Visitors can experience the defining moments, people and circumstances that catapulted Van Gogh’s work to widespread acclaim in the United States.

The exhibition’s presence in Detroit – and more generally, in the Midwest – holds special significance. The DIA’s 1922 purchase of Self-Portrait (1887) was the first by a public museum in the United States. Notably, the next four Van Gogh paintings purchased by American museums were all in the Midwest, where audiences were galvanized by Van Gogh’s rugged aesthetic, featuring subjects from modern, everyday life. Their purchasers were the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri; Saint Louis Art Museum; and Toledo Museum of Art. These important acquisitions – Olive Trees (1889; Kansas City); Stairway at Auvers (1890; Saint Louis); Houses at Auvers (1890; Toledo); and Wheat Fields with Reaper, Auvers (1890, Toledo) – are all featured in the exhibition.

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Stairway at Auvers,’ 1890. Oil on canvas; 19 11/16 by 27 3/4in (50 by 70.5cm). Saint Louis Art Museum, museum purchase 1:1935

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Stairway at Auvers,’ 1890. Oil on canvas; 19 11/16 by 27 3/4in (50 by 70.5cm). Saint Louis Art Museum, museum purchase 1:1935

“One hundred years after the DIA made the bold decision to purchase a Van Gogh painting, we are honored to present Van Gogh in America,” said DIA Director Salvador Salort-Pons. “This unique exhibition includes numerous works that are rarely on public view in the United States, and tells the story – for the first time – of how Van Gogh took shape in the hearts and minds of Americans during the last century.”

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Portrait of Postman Roulin,’ 1888. Oil on canvas; 25 9/16 by 19 7/8in. (65 by 50.5cm). Detroit Institute of Arts, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Buhl Ford II, 1996.25


Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘Portrait of Postman Roulin,’ 1888. Oil on canvas; 25 9/16 by 19 7/8in. (65 by 50.5cm). Detroit Institute of Arts, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Buhl Ford II, 1996.25

One of the most influential artists in the Western canon, Van Gogh amassed a large body of work: more than 850 paintings and almost 1,300 works on paper. He began painting at the age of 27, and was prolific for the next 10 years until his death in 1890.

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘The Bedroom,’ 1889. Oil on canvas; 29 by 36 5/8in (73.6 by 92.3cm). The Art Institute of Chicago, Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection, 1926.417

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘The Bedroom,’ 1889. Oil on canvas; 29 by 36 5/8in (73.6 by 92.3cm). The Art Institute of Chicago, Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection, 1926.417

Works by Van Gogh appeared in more than 50 group shows before he finally received a solo exhibition in an American museum in 1935 at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City. Reflecting and fanning the excitement among American audiences for Van Gogh was Irving Stone’s novel Lust for Life (1934), and Vincente Minnelli’s film adaptation starring Kirk Douglas (1956), which helped shape Americans’ popular understanding of the artist.

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘L’Arlesienne: Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux’ (Marie Julien, 1848-1911), 1888-89. Oil on canvas; 36 by 29in (91.4 by 73.7cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, bequest of Sam A. Lewisohn, 1951, 51.112.3

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853-1890), ‘L’Arlesienne: Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux’ (Marie Julien, 1848-1911), 1888-89. Oil on canvas; 36 by 29in (91.4 by 73.7cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, bequest of Sam A. Lewisohn, 1951, 51.112.3

“How Van Gogh became a household name in the United States is a fascinating, largely untold story,” said Jill Shaw, head of the James Pearson Duffy department of Modern and Contemporary art and Rebecca A. Boylan and Thomas W. Sidlik curator of European art, 1850–1970, at the DIA. “Van Gogh in America examines the landmark moments and trajectory of the artist becoming fully integrated within the American collective imagination, even though he never set foot in the United States.”

Visit the website of the Detroit Institute of Arts and see its dedicated page for Van Gogh in America.