Sunflowers (1889) is one of Vincent van Gogh’s best-known paintings. A great deal of innovative research has been devoted to this masterpiece from the Van Gogh Museum’s collection in recent years.
An international team of specialists headed by former senior conservator Ella Hendriks examined Sunflowers. They used the latest scientific techniques, in order to gather as much information as possible about the canvas, the ground, the paint layers and the previous restorations carried out on the work.
Exhibition
The exhibition Van Gogh and the Sunflowers (21 June - 1 September 2019) shows what the research has contributed to:
- Our knowledge of Van Gogh’s working methods;
- The discolouration of certain pigments;
- The painting’s conservation history;
- The current condition of the work.
Symposium
The Van Gogh Museum was organising a symposium on Friday 21 June, to accompany the exhibition.
- Members of the research team presented their most important findings
- Launch of the publication Van Gogh's Sunflowers Illuminated: Art Meets Science takes place. This scholarly publication is written by scientists, conservators, and art historians. It shows the results of several years of research into the sunflowers paintings in the Van Gogh Museum and the National Gallery.
Symposium programme PDF, 276.2 kB
