Irises
A bouquet of violet irises against a pink background. A still life Van Gogh painted just before leaving the asylum; the background was once redder. Full commentary ↓
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Irises is an oil painting by Vincent van Gogh (1890) in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. It measures 73.7 × 92.1 cm.
In the pictureViolet irises fill a vase set on a yellow-green table against a pale pink background. The petals are deep violet and blue, the leaves long, pointed green. A few blossoms droop over the rim of the vase and touch the table. Because the background is almost a single color, the shapes of the flowers stand out as if cut out and pasted on.
BackgroundIt is one of four still lifes painted in May 1890, a few days before he left the asylum at Saint-Rémy. Van Gogh described this painting as violet irises on a pink background, but the red paint he used has faded over time, and the background is now much paler. It is a product of the period when he was studying complementary contrasts (violet and yellow, pink and green).
Puzzle tipIn this puzzle, the pale pink background pieces are the key. The flowers (violet) and leaves (green) separate by color right away, so complete them first and fill the background last, into the empty spaces. The background pieces also keep slightly different brush directions, so if you zoom in you can tell vertical strokes from diagonal ones. The boundary between table and background is a good reference line.
- Artist
- Dutch, Zundert 1853–1890 Auvers-sur-Oise
- Classification
- Paintings
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 73.7 x 92.1 cm
- Credit line
- Gift of Adele R. Levy, 1958
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art ↗
In these collections: Spring Masterpiece Puzzles · Flower Painting Puzzles
Stories about this work
- Wheat Fields, Cypresses and Sunflowers in the Met's Six Van Goghs
From a Paris self-portrait to the irises of Saint-Rémy, six paintings trace Van Gogh's last four years. Plus why the direction of the brushstrokes in each becomes a puzzle clue.
