Auvers-sur-Oise · July 27, 1890 · investigation
Van Gogh's Tree Roots: The Last Probable Canvas, Without Turning Investigation into Legend
An almost abstract undergrowth, a canvas that remains unfinished and a place identified thanks to a postcard: the clues converge, but the work deserves better than a simple story of the "last painting".
Context, chronology, composition, colors, discovery of 2020 and advice for choosing a reproduction faithful to this exceptional horizontal format.
Seventy days in Auvers
A very productive period, not a long walk towards a single funeral image
Vincent van Gogh arrived in Auvers-sur-Oise on May 20, 1890 after his stay in Saint-Rémy. He found a village near Paris, Doctor Paul Gachet, houses with thatched roofs, gardens, fields and above all the possibility of working outside. In a little over two months, he painted with remarkable intensity. In a little over two months, he painted with remarkable intensity. His elongated canvases, his portraits and his landscapes show very different states: calm, construction, movement, light, fatigue sometimes, but no simple progression towards a "last cry".
Tree roots belongs to this production of Auvers. The subject is very close: a cut slope, hollowed trunks, exposed roots, leaves and clear earth. The framing removes almost any horizon. There is neither consoling sky nor path leading towards the distance. The gaze immediately encounters plant matter and must reconstruct space from the lines.
The Van Gogh Museum today considers this painting to be the most likely candidate for the status of the last work. The formula is important: it is based on a body of historical, material and topographical clues, and not on the dramatic impression produced by the roots alone.
A precise testimony
Andries Bonger mentions an "undergrowth" painted on the morning of July 27, a description compatible with this canvas.
An unfinished work
The lower left part reveals an execution not carried out to the same degree as the center.
An identifiable place
An old postcard and the current state of the embankment allowed a convincing topographical comparison.
What we know, what we deduce
Why Tree Roots replaced the Crow Wheat Field in the story of the last painting
The Wheat field with crows has long occupied this place in the collective imagination: dark skies, divergent paths and black birds seemed to form a perfect conclusion. The chronology of Auvers' works is, however, less theatrical. Several paintings were painted after this field, and the clues linked to Tree roots are more direct.
| Hint | What he establishes | Limit to keep | Degree of confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andries Bonger Testimony | Vincent had painted an "undergrowth" on the morning of July 27, 1890. | Modern title of work is not cited in this wording. | Strong when crossed with subject. |
| Unfinished appearance | Lower left hasn't received the same degree of finish. | Van Gogh could voluntarily leave reserves or areas open. | Additional index, not isolated evidence. |
| Old postcard | The profile of the embankment, roots and trunks correspond to the painted pattern. | The comparison requires expertise of the land and vegetation. | Location deemed "highly plausible" in 2020. |
| Distance from Hostel | The rue Daubigny site was quickly accessible on foot. | Proximity alone does not date the painting session. | Consistent with work habits. |
| Wheat field with crows | A late and major work by Auvers. | Its dramatic atmosphere does not prove that it was the last. | Cultural myth, less convincing chronology. |
Read before interpreting
A landscape that initially resembles a network of colors
The subject appears after painting
At first glance, the eye encounters blue arcs, dark green verticals, yellow touches and white fragments. It takes a few seconds to recognize the trees, slope and roots. This hesitation explains why the work is sometimes compared to 20th century abstraction, even if Van Gogh observes a real motif.
Framing is the primary driving force behind this sensation. The upper edge cuts the trunks; the lower edge cuts the ground. No element gives a stable panoramic view. Shapes enter and exit the painting as if the viewer were looking at a much larger section of vegetation.
Lines don't just describe objects. They organize a circulation: curves of the roots, diagonals of the slope, rises of the trunks and small touches which fill the intervals. The painting does not have a classic center; it distributes energy over its entire width.
The 2020 topographical survey
A postcard returned its embankment on rue Daubigny to the painting
During the 2020 confinement, Wouter van der Veen, scientific director of the Van Gogh Institute, noticed in an old postcard an embankment covered with roots whose design is strongly reminiscent of canvas. The comparison is then studied with Louis van Tilborgh and Teio Meedendorp of the Van Gogh Museum, as well as with the dendrologist Bert Maes.
An old view of rue Daubigny
The postcard retains the profile of the embankment, the trunks received and root configurations visible before modern transformations.
Visual rapprochement
The shapes are superimposed and compared to the table: slope, rocky elements, location of trunks and main lines have strong correspondences.
Public announcement
The Van Gogh Museum announces that the identification of the location is "highly plausible", a cautious formulation which respects the nature of the investigation.
A pattern still readable
The site, located near the Auberge Ravoux, retains part of its structure. It allows us to understand to what extent Van Gogh reframed and intensified a real place.
The interest of the discovery is not to transform the embankment into a relic, but to show that the strangeness of the painting arises from a very concrete observation.
Critical reading based on research from the Van Gogh MuseumMaterial, palette, comparison
Trunk blue, acid greens and yellow earth: nature is not copied, it is constructed
Van Gogh is not looking for a neutral local color. Blue separates shapes, yellows move the soil, greens change temperature and whites provide breathing space. The paste remains visible; it gives weight to the roots and prevents the image from becoming a simple decorative pattern.
An intensity different from other paintings by Auvers
The field gives a horizon and the garden offers architectural landmarks. Tree roots refuses this support. Its strength comes from proximity, entanglement and repetition. For reproduction, shades of blue, separation of greens and ocher density are therefore more important than spectacular saturation.
The format must also remain quite wide. Too small, the canvas becomes a confused mosaic; cropped into a square, it loses the lateral tension which makes the gaze circulate.
Neither diagnosis nor automatic will
Six shortcuts that distort Tree Roots
Read each root as a symbol
Van Gogh had already drawn gnarled roots in 1882. The motif also belongs to his lasting observation of nature.
Confuse last and will
A final work can remain a landscape study; its chronological position does not transform any form into a premeditated farewell.
Make the Crow Field proof
The dramatic atmosphere of the painting has nourished the myth, but it does not constitute dating.
Say that the painting is abstract
The reading may seem abstract, yet the observed motive and probable location are very real.
Saturate the colors
Too lively reproduction crushes the whites, earths and transitions that make the roots readable.
Crop the double square
Width is an essential fact of composition; a reframing radically changes the movement of the work.
Five active products verified
Compare Tree Roots to Other Faces of Auvers
These works allow you to choose between the plant tangle, the large landscape, the garden and the portrait. The links lead directly to the active products of the store.
Tree roots
The most graphic and dense choice. To be preferred on a quiet horizontal wall, with enough perspective for the pattern to rebuild.
See the work →Wheat field with crows
More immediately narrative thanks to the sky, paths and birds. Its blue-yellow contrast creates a powerful focal point.
See the work →The Daubigny Garden
A more breathable landscape of Auvers, carried by flowers, houses and a less tight horizontal movement.
See the work →
Portrait of Doctor Gachet
The leaning face, the red table and the blue suit give a more intimate presence, suitable for an office or a library.
See the work →
The Garden of Doctor Gachet
A brighter solution to retain Van Gogh's nervous touches without the almost abstract density of the roots.
See the work →Extend the research
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Quantities were verified in the active catalog on July 14, 2026.
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Reference documents
Four primary and institutional sources
These documents allow us to verify the dating, location, chronology of Auvers and Van Gogh's own words without depending on a repeated legend.
Exhibition texts
Chronology of the latest works and identification of Tree roots on the morning of July 27.
Van Gogh Museum · 2020Annual report
Presentation of the highly plausible identification of the place from the postcard.
July 10, 1890 · letter 898Letter to Theo and Jo
Van Gogh talks about his life "attacked at the root", then explains that he returned to work on three large canvases.
July 23, 1890 · letter 902Last letter sent
Essential document to place the last days in their family, material and artistic context.
Ten specific answers
Frequently asked questions about Van Gogh's Tree Roots
Is Tree Roots Really Van Gogh's Last Painting?
The Van Gogh Museum considers him the most likely candidate. A testimony mentions an undergrowth painted on the morning of July 27, 1890, and the subject corresponds to the canvas, which remained partially unfinished.
Why was the Crow Wheat Field long considered the last?
Its dark sky, paths and birds created a very strong biographical conclusion. This visual interpretation often took precedence over the actual chronology of Auvers' paintings.
When did Van Gogh paint Tree Roots?
The work is dated July 1890 and, according to the reconstruction presented by the museum, probably from the morning of July 27.
Where was the painting painted?
On a wooded embankment on rue Daubigny in Auvers-sur-Oise, a short distance from the Auberge Ravoux. The location was highly plausibly identified in 2020.
How was the location found?
Wouter van der Veen compared an old postcard to the painting. Specialists from the Van Gogh Museum and a dendrologist then compared the profile of the land, the trunks and the roots.
Is the painting unfinished?
Certain areas, notably at the bottom left, appear less completed. This state supports the hypothesis of a final interrupted session, without being sufficient in itself to date the work.
Is tree roots an abstract painting?
No: it represents a real motif. Its tight framing, cut shapes and colorful network nevertheless produce an almost abstract reading.
What are the dimensions of the original?
Oil on canvas measures 50.3 × 100.1 cm. This very horizontal ratio is essential to the composition.
Where to see the original?
The work belongs to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, within the collection of the Vincent van Gogh Foundation. Its presence in the room may vary depending on loans and hangings.
How to choose a reproduction of Tree Roots?
Respect the horizontal format, avoid square cropping and check the separation of blues, greens, yellow earths and light reserves. A fairly large format will preserve the readability of the root network.
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