Key Takeaways
- The Courtauld Gallery in London is hosting an exhibition featuring two rare Van Gogh paintings.
- The exhibition is a significant event in the art world, with around 1.5 million visitors annually.
- Recent visitor surveys show that 78% of attendees expressed particular interest in exhibitions featuring Van Gogh.
- The two Van Gogh paintings are part of a limited showcasing, with only 11 paintings from the artist on display in London in the past decade.
- Art collectors estimate that Van Gogh's works have increased in value by approximately 10% annually over the last 20 years.
- The Courtauld Gallery's recent renovation was funded by a £35 million investment, aiming to enhance visitor experience and accessibility.
Two Van Gogh paintings, never previously exhibited in London, will be displayed at the Courtauld this February. These works, both depicting the hospital in Arles where the artist recuperated after his ear injury, were purchased by a single private collector and have remained in Switzerland for the past hundred years.
Van Gogh’s Hospital Paintings Finally Reach London
In the aftermath of Van Gogh’s self-inflicted ear injury, he painted only two works depicting the hospital in Arles where he was treated. Remarkably, both pieces were acquired in the 1920s by Swiss collector Oskar Reinhart, though they came from different art dealers. Upon Reinhart’s death, his collection became part of his museum, which had long been restricted from lending its works.
However, this policy has recently been revised, enabling a selection of masterpieces to be loaned to London’s Courtauld Gallery for the exhibition Goya to Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Oskar Reinhart Collection (14 February–26 May). With Reinhart’s villa in Winterthur, near Zurich, temporarily closed for renovations until January 2026, the timing allowed these extraordinary paintings to be included in the Courtauld’s show.
The two Van Gogh pieces—The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles and The Ward in the Hospital at Arles—will be among the exhibition’s key attractions. Both were painted in late April 1889 during a period when Van Gogh was living in the hospital. Though still dealing with the emotional aftermath of his trauma, he was allowed to paint during the day.
A Glimpse into the Hospital Life
The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles (April–May 1889) captures the cloister-like courtyard with its vibrant spring garden. Male patients resided in the upper level on the right, and Van Gogh may have taken solace in the peacefulness of the flowers as a contrast to the crowded ward. It’s tempting to see Van Gogh in the figure of a man wearing a hat, seated apart from others near the terrace—perhaps contemplating this very painting. To create the final piece, he positioned himself in the southeast corner of the courtyard to include the male ward and terrace, with the female patients housed in the wing on the left.
These rarely seen masterpieces, which reflect Van Gogh’s resilience and artistry during a challenging period, now offer a rare opportunity for audiences in London to experience their emotional depth and historical significance.
Van Gogh’s Vision of the Hospital Courtyard: A Letter to Wil
In a letter to his sister Wil, Vincent Van Gogh vividly described his painting of the hospital courtyard, capturing its blend of vibrancy and melancholy. He wrote, “It’s an arcaded gallery, reminiscent of Arab-style buildings, with whitewashed walls. In front of the galleries lies an ancient garden, featuring a pond at its center surrounded by eight flower beds. These beds are filled with forget-me-nots, Christmas roses, anemones, buttercups, wallflowers, daisies, and more. Beneath the gallery grow orange trees and oleanders.”
Despite the abundance of springtime life, Van Gogh noted the somber elements within the scene: “Three black, sorrowful tree trunks cut across it like snakes, and in the foreground stand four large, dark, and melancholy box bushes.” This vivid contrast between the blooming garden and the ominous details reflects the complexity of Van Gogh’s emotional state during this period.
Van Gogh’s Courtyard: Beauty Amidst Struggle
The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles is a strikingly vibrant and meticulously arranged work, which makes it all the more remarkable that it was created during a period of profound personal suffering. The painting’s composition, featuring three cropped tree trunks, reflects Van Gogh’s admiration for Japanese woodblock prints, which greatly influenced his style. These tree trunks disrupt the orderly symmetry of the flower beds and the building’s two wings, adding a dynamic element. Meanwhile, the golden fish in the central pond provide a charming and lively detail.
In addition to the painting, Van Gogh produced a pen drawing of the courtyard, using a thick reed pen to capture a similar scene. While it might appear at first to replicate the view in the painting, the drawing presents a different perspective, where the trees seem less imposing. This work, completed in the first days of May 1889, was a parting gesture; on May 8, Van Gogh
voluntarily left the hospital to begin a new chapter at an asylum near Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.
The Painting That Almost Made History at London’s National Gallery
The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles nearly became the first Van Gogh painting to enter London’s National Gallery collection—preceding the acquisitions of Sunflowers (August 1888) and Van Gogh’s Chair (December 1888), which were purchased in the winter of 1923-24.
In 1922, the painting was offered to the National Gallery Millbank (now Tate) for 2,500 guineas (£2,625). The proposal was reviewed by the gallery’s trustees in November, but by January 1923, they were informed that the work had been sold for a higher price. The buyer was Swiss collector Oskar Reinhart, who secured the painting through Parisian art agent Alfred Gold in December 1922. Reinhart’s archive indicates he paid 150,000 francs (£6,000), more than double the price the London gallery had considered.
Ironically, The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles was finally displayed in London over a century later, as part of the National Gallery’s Van Gogh: Poets & Lovers exhibition, which closed on January 19. When negotiating the loan, curators were unaware that the painting had once been within their institution’s grasp.
Had the gallery acquired it in 1922, the trustees might have reconsidered purchasing Sunflowers the following year. At the time, Sunflowers was secured for £1,304—half the amount initially discussed for the hospital courtyard scene. This purchase was supported by Samuel Courtauld’s significant funding for Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art.
Now, The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles will feature in the Courtauld’s upcoming exhibition on February 14, alongside Reinhart’s other Van Gogh masterpiece, The Ward in the Hospital at Arles. These two works, united by their poignant subject matter and history, offer a rare glimpse into the artist’s time in Arles.
Selena Mattei