“Portrait of Vincent van Gogh”
It’s always fun to see an artist’s version of other famous artists. Especially when the person depicted is Vincent van Gogh, who we mostly only know from his own self-portraits.
“Portrait of Vincent van Gogh” is a pastel and chalk on paper piece by the French Post-Impressionist artist, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, from 1887. Van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec were friends when van Gogh lived in Paris, France. At the same time, they both studied at the studio of Paris painter Fernand Cormon and exhibited works together at the Restaurant du Chalet.
In this drawing, Toulouse-Lautrec depicts van Gogh in a favorite hangout, the Parisian restaurant, Café du Tambourin. In front of van Gogh, there is a glass of absinthe, the infamous “Green Fairy” drink popular with the art crowd. According to Paul Signac, during this period, van Gogh would end every night at the bar with a drink, giving van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec another shared experience.
The Café du Tambourin played an important role in the art career of van Gogh. It was owned by Agostina Segatori, an Italian model and restaurateur. She was painted by several famous artists of the day, including her once partner, Édouard Joseph Dantan, Eugène Delacroix, Vincent van Gogh, Édouard Manet, Jean-Léon Gérôme, and Camille Corot. For several months in 1887, Segatori may have been in a romantic relationship with van Gogh and she was very supportive of his art.
Van Gogh had an agreement with Segatori where he would furnish the walls of her restaurant with still-life paintings, and in turn, he would eat for free. As such, van Gogh spent a lot of time there and painted portraits at the restaurant depicting the people he met and the friends he made. Van Gogh’s first formal art exhibition in Paris was held at this restaurant. He also orchestrated another art show there in 1887, with his work and those of his friends.
“Portrait of Vincent van Gogh” is currently in the collections of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
For more on Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
