Orchards in Bloom
At the best of his time in Arles he felt it himself — but he did not know what to call it.
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F394 Pink Peach Trees (Souvenir de Mauve) 1888 -
F403 The White Orchard 1888 -
F405 Small Pear Tree in Blossom 1888 -
F553 Orchard with Apricot Trees in Blossom 1888
Painting
In spring 1888, Van Gogh returned repeatedly to the flowering orchards of Arles. The four works here are Pink Peach Trees (Souvenir de Mauve), F394; The White Orchard, F403; Small Pear Tree in Blossom, F405; and Orchard with Apricot Trees in Blossom, F553. Their formats matter: he planned to hang the vertical pear tree with horizontal orchard paintings, including the apricot orchard.
Letter
In letter 591, dated about 1 April 1888, Van Gogh explained the dedication on F394 and proposed sending the painting to Mauve's widow. Letter 592 records his excitement at working among flowering trees. By letter 597, about 13 April, he was considering how different canvases would hang together. The tribute to Mauve belongs to one peach-tree painting, not the whole series.
Place
Orchards outside Arles. In letter 596, the setting includes yellow reed fences, a shelter against the mistral, dark cypresses and vegetable beds in varied greens. His observation of this southern landscape extended beyond blossom to the boundaries and colours of cultivated ground.
He arrived in Arles in February 1888, stepping off the train into snow, recognizing nothing. Soon after arriving he linked the place to Japan: the air clear, the colours bright, the water like the blue and green of the prints (letter 587, to Bernard).
In March the orchards came into blossom, and he went out to paint every day, one or two canvases a day. The orchard in bloom is not simply spring; it is the first time he believed the South could retrain his eye.
A few months later he wrote to Wil (letter 626) that he might become nothing but a work machine, unfit for and indifferent to all the rest of life. This was not a fear that work would stop; it was a fear of what work might exclude.
Events
- The Copyist · Letter 591
In a letter dated about 1 April, Van Gogh explained the dedication of F394 to Mauve and planned to send it to Mauve's widow in both brothers' names.
- The Colour Experimenter · Letter 592
Around 3 April, he told Theo that the flowering trees kept him working intensely, seeking a Provençal orchard full of gaiety.
- The Translator · Letter 596
Around 12 April, he explained to Bernard how he drew essential outlines on the spot and filled them with simplified purple, blue and green tones.
- Synaesthetic Precision · Letter 597
Around 13 April, he described the small pear tree's purple trunk, white flowers and yellow butterfly, and planned to hang the vertical work with two horizontal orchard paintings.
From the Letters
je suis dans une rage de travail puisque les arbres sont en fleurs et que je voulais faire un verger de Provence d’une gaieté monstre I'm in a fury of work since the trees are in blossom and I wanted to do a Provençal orchard of tremendous gaiety.
Actuellement je suis pris par les arbres fruitiers en fleur At present I am absorbed in the fruit trees in blossom.
Le petit poirier a un tronc violet et des fleurs blanches The small pear tree has a purple trunk and white flowers.
Letter Sources
Van Gogh letter records referenced on this page, linked to the Van Gogh Letters Project. vangoghletters.org