The anniversary year of 2023 kicked off with a tribute to the Van Gogh family. Without the unconditional support that they offered Vincent, the museum simply would not have existed.
How did Vincent van Gogh become a world-famous artist? To this day, his family plays an important role in this.
The exhibition Choosing Vincent. Portrait of a Family History is telling a personal story of doubt, setbacks, pride, and triumph. A story punctuated with dilemmas, seen through the eyes of Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), his brother Theo (1857-1891), Theo's wife Jo (1862-1925) and their son Vincent (1890-1978), named after his uncle.
In the multisensory exhibition, you get to know Vincent and his extraordinary family by looking, listening and doing. The many masterpieces and lesser-known gems show how the family collection grew to become a world-famous collection.
Jo van Gogh Bonger (centre) in her living room, surrounded by paintings by Van Gogh. On the left of the photo is her son Vincent, on the right her second husband Johan Cohen Gosschalk. Photo: Bernard Eilers, 1910-1911
The painting and crowd favourite Almond Blossom has special meaning for the Van Gogh family. Vincent painted it as a gift for his newborn nephew.
Discover all the stories behind the exhibition in the audio tour.
Please do touch! Choose one of the frames from the bin and see how it looks with the painting on the wall.
Vincent van Gogh surrounded by his family. From left to right: Vincent (the engineer), Jo Van Gogh-Bonger, Vincent van Gogh, Theo van Gogh.
Wander through the exhibition free from fellow visitors and search your favourite painting.
The exhibition will be accompanied by the book Choosing Vincent. From family collection to Van Gogh Museum. The publication explains how the collection of many masterpieces stayed together after Vincent's death and how it could be housed in its own museum 50 years ago. The catalogue features many unknown historical photos of the Van Gogh family and photographs from the museum's early days.
The catalogue is available at the museum shop and online webstore, in English and Dutch from 10 February 2023.
This exhibition is supported by: