van Gogh Repetitions

Accompanying an exhibition at the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, and The Cleveland Museum of Art that examined why, how, and for whom Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) created multiple versions or repetitions of his work is this new book by curators Rathbone (The Phillips Collection) and William Robinson (Cleveland Museum of Art), along with Phillips Collection head of conservation Elizabeth Steele and Cleveland Museum senior conservator Marcia Steele. The authors analyze documents and new scientific research involving X-rays of the artworks and high-resolution digital imagery to better understand the sequence of van Gogh's art. It is argued that in many of the second versions of the artist's paintings, radiography reveals carefully constructed brushstroke repetition that contradicts the clichéd view of the artist as a madman. This is also confirmed by passages from his letters that show the methodical aspect of his creative process by the way he refined and reworked his paintings. The curators also argue that there were practical reasons for van Gogh to create repetitions of his works including as gifts, for art exchanges with other artists, to retain a version for himself, to demonstrate his progress to others, and so that he also had more works to sell and distribute to dealers.