489

Br. 1990: 492 | CL: 397
From: Vincent van Gogh
To: Theo van Gogh
Date: Nuenen, on or about Saturday, 4 April 1885
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1. Mr van Gogh was buried on Monday, 30 March; Theo went back to Paris on the afternoon of Wednesday, 1 April. This emerges from a letter – undated, but written shortly after that day – from Uncle Jan van Gogh to Uncle Vincent van Gogh and Aunt Cornelie. On 28 March he informed his sister Maria (Mietje) Johanna van Gogh: ‘Vincent behaves well enough, obviously rather withdrawn but bearable all the same, apart from that a tendency to cool reasoning’ (Amsterdam, Van Gogh Museum Documentation, bd 15. Nibbeling/Weenink Ladies Collection, De Bilt).
2. Elisabeth van Gogh later recalled: ‘When Father died and Mrs Poots wanted to see Father once again, Vincent stood beside her and said: “yes, Mrs Poots, dying is hard, but living is harder still”’ (FR b2002). See Pickvance 1992, p. 68.
3. Probably Head of a woman (F 160 / JH 722 [2500]). See cat. Amsterdam 1999, pp. 94-95.
[2500]
4. Theo took several works with him, among them Head of a woman (Gordina de Groot) (F 130 / JH 692 [2496]) – letter sketch A corresponds with this – and probably also Head of a woman (F 69 / JH 724 [2501]), which in type and colouration is akin to Head of a woman (F 160 / JH 722 [2500]). The batch also included Honesty in a vase (F 76 / JH 542 [2491]), as we know from letter 490. Head of a woman (F 80a / JH 682) is the only other portrait of an old woman in Theo’s collection, and could therefore probably be identified with the head of an old woman Vincent had intended to send Theo in March (letter 484) Cf. cat. Amsterdam 1999, pp. 11-13, 94-95, 98-99, 238-239.
[2496] [2501] [2500] [2491]
a. Means: ‘vereffenen’ (settle).
5. This remark relates to Mauve’s apprenticeship in 1855-1857 with P.F. van Os in Haarlem, near Bloemendaal. Cf. Saskia de Bodt, Anton Mauve en de Haagse School. The Hague 1997, p. 11 (Openbaar Kunstbezit 4).
6. In the mid-nineteenth century a group of painters worked in the French village of Barbizon in the Forest of Fontainebleau. They are known as the Barbizon School – their intimate scenes and sedate landscapes were usually painted outdoors.
7. Theo had probably given Vincent his allowance for April in person.
8. Van Gogh was later to depict the church in the field with the peasants’ churchyard in Nuenen many times. At the beginning of June this resulted in The old church tower at Nuenen (‘The peasants’ churchyard’) (F 84 / JH 772 [2512]), which was painted over another scene and had been preceded by three watercolours. See cat. Amsterdam 1999, pp. 152-159, cat. no. 28. Cf. also letter 259, n. 6.
[2512]
9. See notes 4 and 3 respectively for the paintings after which the letter sketches Head of a woman and Head of a woman (both F- / JH 723) were done.