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LACRIMAE RERVM Gallery

Exhibition

The Great Consolation

So it remains a great consolation to me that the work goes forward rather than back.

To his mother, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, 19 September 1889 · letter 803

The same phrase in Vincent van Gogh’s hand
In Vincent’s hand: letter 803, sheet 1, lines 29–31 · Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, b654 V/1962

Vincent Willem van Gogh 1853–1890

Avenue of Poplars in Autumn
Avenue of Poplars in Autumn, October 1884

Ah! mon cher ami, faire de la peinture ce qu’est déjà avant nous la musique de Berlioz et de Wagner.... un art consolateur pour les coeurs navrés! Il n’y a encore que quelques uns qui comme vous et moi le sentent!!!

Ah, my dear friend, to make of painting what the music of Berlioz and Wagner has already been before us… an art of consolation for broken hearts! There are as yet only a few who feel this as you and I do!!!

To Paul Gauguin, Arles, 21 January 1889 · letter 739

je croirais presque que ces toiles vous diront ce que je ne sais dire en paroles, ce que je vois de sain et de fortifiant dans la campagne.

I would almost believe that these canvases will tell you what I cannot say in words, what I see that is healthy and fortifying in the country.

To Theo and Jo van Gogh, Auvers-sur-Oise, about 10 July 1890 · letter 898
Gallery number
LR 4
Section
Painting
Works
100
Opened
25 November 2008

Appendices · Appendices

  1. ISupplementary materialWhere each work is held: collection, acquisition, inscriptions, exhibitions, literature.
  2. IIIndexEvery work in the exhibition in a single table: dates, catalogue numbers, collections, inventory numbers.
  3. IIIDossier of the principal workAvenue of Poplars in Autumn: letters and autographs, verses copied in his hand, first notices, canvas and frame, provenance, exhibitions, literature.
  4. IVCorrectionsWhat was wrong in the record of the exhibition, and when it was put right; latest correction: 4 October 2026.

Music of the room

Die Ehre Gottes aus der NaturLudwig van Beethoven · sung by Friedrich SchorrBrunswick 10160-A, matrix 12901, 1924

Vincent names Beethoven in a letter to Theo from Saint-Rémy in the same September days of 1889 as the letter to his mother that gave the exhibition its title. Copying Millet, he compares himself to a performer: ‘si telle personne jouera du Beethoven elle y ajoutera son interprétation personelle – en musique et alors surtout pour le chant’: ‘if this or that person plays Beethoven, that person will bring a personal interpretation to it – in music, and then above all in singing’ (letter 805). What he himself heard the letters do not say. Die Ehre Gottes aus der Natur, the fourth of six songs on poems by Gellert, op. 48 (1803), is a paraphrase of the nineteenth Psalm: ‘The heavens declare the glory of God.’

  1. Gauguin’s Chair Gauguin’s ChairNovember 1888
  2. Fishing Boats on the Beach at Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer Fishing Boats on the Beach at Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-MerJune 1888
  3. Bridge at Arles (Pont de Langlois) Bridge at Arles (Pont de Langlois)1888
  4. Portrait of the Artist Portrait of the Artist1889
  5. Self-Portrait Self-Portraitspring 1887
  6. Ears of Wheat Ears of WheatJune 1890
  7. The Garden of Saint Paul’s Hospital The Garden of Saint Paul’s Hospital1889
  8. Memory of the Garden at Etten (Ladies of Arles) Memory of the Garden at Etten (Ladies of Arles)1888
  9. Self-Portrait Self-Portrait1889
  10. La Maison de La Crau (The Old Mill) La Maison de La Crau (The Old Mill)1888
  11. Portrait of Madame Trabuc Portrait of Madame Trabucautumn 1889
  12. Le café de nuit (The Night Café) Le café de nuit (The Night Café)1888
  13. Still Life: Vase with Twelve Sunflowers Still Life: Vase with Twelve SunflowersAugust 1888
  14. Wheatfield with Crows Wheatfield with Crows1890
  15. Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat1887
  16. Self-Portrait with Felt Hat Self-Portrait with Felt HatDecember 1886 – January 1887
  17. The Postman (Joseph-Étienne Roulin) The Postman (Joseph-Étienne Roulin)1889
  18. Farm with Stacks of Peat Farm with Stacks of PeatOctober 1883
  19. La Mousmé La Mousmé1888
  20. The Lover (Portrait of Lieutenant Milliet) The Lover (Portrait of Lieutenant Milliet)September–October 1888
  21. Vegetable Gardens in Montmartre Vegetable Gardens in Montmartre1887
  22. Congregation Leaving the Reformed Church in Nuenen Congregation Leaving the Reformed Church in Nuenen1884, finished in autumn 1885
  23. Flower Beds in Holland Flower Beds in Holland1883
  24. The Raising of Lazarus (after Rembrandt) The Raising of Lazarus (after Rembrandt)May 1890
  25. Field with Irises near Arles Field with Irises near Arles1888
  26. Pietà (after Delacroix) Pietà (after Delacroix)September 1889
  27. Pink Peach Trees (‘Souvenir de Mauve’) Pink Peach Trees (‘Souvenir de Mauve’)about 30 March 1888
  28. The Harvest The HarvestJune 1888
  29. Peasants Planting Potatoes Peasants Planting Potatoes1884
  30. The Smoker (Le Fumeur) The Smoker (Le Fumeur)February 1888
  31. The Old Tower in the Fields The Old Tower in the FieldsAugust 1884
  32. Roses Roses1890
  33. The Potato Eaters The Potato Eaters1885
  34. The Zouave The ZouaveJune 1888
  35. View of a Butcher’s Shop View of a Butcher’s ShopFebruary 1888
  36. Birds’ Nests Birds’ NestsSeptember–October 1885
  37. Cypresses Cypresses1889
  38. Mountains at Saint-Rémy Mountains at Saint-Rémy1889
  39. Landscape at Twilight Landscape at TwilightJune 1890
  40. The Sower The Sower1888
  41. Landscape with Rising Sun Landscape with Rising Sun1889
  42. Still Life with Bible Still Life with BibleOctober 1885
  43. Self-Portrait as a Painter Self-Portrait as a Painter1887–88
  44. Irises Irises1890
  45. The Bedroom at Arles The Bedroom at Arles1889
  46. The Siesta The Siesta1889–90
  47. The Yellow House (The Street) The Yellow House (The Street)1888
  48. Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum) Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum)1888