A painting by Van Gogh was found in the Warsaw museum. How did it happen?

Muzeum Jana Pawła II i Prymasa Wyszyńskiego

On Monday, March 25, an expert commission proved the authenticity of Vincent Van Gogh’s painting “Country houses among trees”. This is the only painting by the artist who is in Poland. From April 26, it will be exhibited in the Museum of Ivan Paul II and Primate Vyshinsky, informs press service

Research in the Laboratory of Analysis and Protective Control of Historical Objects (LANBOZ) of the National Museum in Krakow continued for about a year. Thanks to them, experts were able to determine the painting technology, as well as choose the necessary methods of canvas conservation. It was also possible to identify the materials used by Van Gogh.

“Country Houses Between Trees’ belongs to the early period of Van Gogh’s work, in which the artist used muted colors and showed a penchant for dark tones, before being influenced by the Impressionists“, he says Stefania Ambroziakone of the curators of the exhibition dedicated to the canvas.

Researcher of the Art Museum in Krakow Julio del Hoyo noted, that the pigments correspond to those that the artist described in letters to his brother and used during that period. Ultraviolet and X-ray radiation, microscopy and scanning were also used for the study.

There are some flaws and chips on the board to which the canvas is attached. The paint was also damaged during the transportation of the work around the world. The painting underwent careful conservation by the museum staff – dirt was removed from the canvas and a new frame was installed.

The painting was created in 1883 in the Nynen art studio near the Dutch city of Eindhoven. Vincent Van Gogh wrote it 5 years before the famous “Sunflowers” and “The Bedroom in Arles”. Shortly after its creation, it changed hands and often changed owners. At the beginning of the 20th century, Van Gogh’s works gained popularity and significantly increased in price, due to which the painting “Country houses among trees” constantly traveled between collectors – first in Belgium, and then in Switzerland. In the 1980s, it came to Poland, and since 2020 it has been stored in the archive of the Museum of Ivan Paul II and Stefan Vyszynski.

The painting “Country houses among trees” depicts a Dutch landscape. Such a composition was rare for Van Gogh, because the artist did not often choose such realistic subjects for his works. The price of the canvas has not yet been determined, but it is suspected that it could amount to millions of dollars.

Van Gogh works at auctions

In March 2024, one of the artist’s paintings sold at auction. It was the annual Tefaf art and antiques fair in the Netherlands, where the new owner of the Peasant Head painting paid 4.5 million euros for it.

The portrait is painted in oil on a canvas measuring 63 by 48 centimeters. The probable time of its creation is 1884, when Van Gogh lived in the Dutch city of Nynen. At the same time, he also painted the world-famous painting “Potato Eaters” and the above-mentioned “Country Huts Among the Trees”.

In 2021, the painting “Wheat Stacks” by Van Gogh sold at an international auction Christie’s for $30 million.