Van Gogh after Millet
Locked up in winter at the Saint-Rémy asylum, deprived of a model and the outdoors, Vincent turns to Jean-François Millet. For months, he "copied" his drawings of the Travaux des champs. But to copy, for him, is to translate: to pass Millet's black and white into the burning language of color.
Copy Millet to recharge your batteries
In the winter of 1889-1890, at the Saint-Rémy asylum, Van Gogh made more than thirty copies according to his masters, including around twenty according to Millet. It's not about reproduction: it translated millet's black and white compositions in his own language, that of the color and light of the South.
These paintings were a comfort to him. He wrote to Théo that his brush, then, "slides between my fingers like a bow on the strings of a violin". Théo, in turn, will see in this series "some of his best works".
Copy to survive confinement
At the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum, winter is harsh. Vincent no longer has the freedom to go and paint far away, the cold forbids him from the outdoors, and he lacks models. To nourish his work, he turns to what he has at hand: collections of engravings, including Field work from Millet.
These copies become, he says, a "kind of consolation". He admits to Théo that he started them "without thinking about it", before realizing that he is learning a lot. His brush then, he writes, "slides between my fingers like a bow on the strings of a violin - entirely for my pleasure".
"My brush slides like a bow on the strings of a violin."Vincent to Théo, about copies
The language of colors
The word is crucial: Vincent does not say "copy" but translate. From a black drawing by Millet - sower, digger, shepherdess -, he recomposes a colored canvas, lit by the southern sun. The composition remains, the flesh changes.
It's the approach of a performer, like a musician replaying a score. Vincent keeps the structure of Millet (whom he reveres) but dresses it in his own palette: deep blues, burning yellows, complementary greens. The drawing becomes a painting, the gray becomes noon.
This idea of "translation" runs through all of Vincent's art: he would later say that he never invented a painting from scratch, but "found" his subjects in nature - and, here, among the masters.
A series within a series
The core of the copies after Millet is made up of the Field work : a series of peasant gestures - sowing, plowing, digging, guarding the animals, resting at midday - which Vincent transposes one by one.
The other "translated" masters
Millet is not alone. In the winter of Saint-Rémy, Vincent also draws from Delacroix, Daumier, Rembrandt, Doré. Each time, the same gesture: taking a composition to rethink it in color.
Pieta, Good Samaritan
Rare religious subjects in his home, where we saw a red Christ resembling Vincent.
The Drinkers
The serious humanity of the caricaturist, transposed into a muted palette.
The Prisoners' Round, Lazarus
Confinement, resurrection: themes that resonate with one's own captivity.
Théo, seeing the whole, will judge these copies among his brother's best paintings. Far from a school exercise, they are a way of dialoguing, remotely, with the masters he loves.
To copy is to love
For Vincent, copying Millet is neither pastiche nor lack of inspiration. It is a tribute, a conversation, and even a refuge. By translating the peasants of Millet into its color, it pays homage to the man who first made the worker a noble subject.
These paintings also show a peaceful Vincent: "my brush... for my pleasure", he writes. In the difficulty of the asylum, the painting after Millet brings him joy.
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See the collectionPeasants of Van Gogh
Weavers, sowers, diggers: the entire peasant period.
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See the collectionVan Gogh after Millet
Sowers, diggers and Meridian after Millet.
See the collectionSuns, sunsets and sunrises by Van Gogh
Suns, sunsets and sunrises, including Montmajour.
See the collectionVan Gogh self-portrait
Self-portraits from all periods.
See the collectionVan Gogh in Arles
Sunflowers, Room, coffee at night, orchards from 1888.
See the collectionVan Gogh in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence
Starry night, cypresses, olive trees, irises from 1889.
See the collectionVan Gogh in Paris
Montmartre, Asnières, Parisian experiments.
See the collectionVan Gogh in Auvers-sur-Oise
Church, fields, crows of the last months.
See the collectionVan Gogh after Millet
Why did Van Gogh copy Millet?
By necessity, first: in winter at the Saint-Rémy asylum, without a model or outdoors, he draws on Millet's collections of engravings. Then out of admiration: he sees in Millet the one who made the peasant a noble subject.
How many copies did he make according to Millet?
Around twenty, out of more than thirty copies in total (after Delacroix, Daumier, Rembrandt, Doré).
Is this simple reproduction?
No. Vincent talks about "translating": he takes Millet's black and white composition and reinvents it in his own colorful language. Like a musician performing a score.
What is La Méridienne?
The midday rest of a peasant couple, according to a drawing by Millet. This is one of Vincent's most famous "translations", the peak of the series.
Are these copies considered major works?
Yes. Théo himself saw in this series some of Vincent's best paintings. They are very popular today.
Where to see these paintings?
Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam), Musée d'Orsay (Paris), and other museums depending on the works.
Go to texts
- Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam - collection.
- The Letters of Vincent van Gogh - Van Gogh Museum scholarly edition /Huygens ING.
- Wikipedia (en) - Copies by Vincent van Gogh, series after Millet and other masters.
- Wikipedia (en) - influence of Millet.
- The Letters of Vincent van Gogh, Van Gogh Museum edition /Huygens ING.
- Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, collection.
- Wikimedia Commons - La Méridienne (after Millet), public domain.
Vincent van Gogh's works are in the public domain. Short quotes are taken from his letters (Van Gogh Museum edition). Reproductions come from Wikimedia Commons (public domain).
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