Flower Beds in Holland
Rectangular plots of flowers, each in a single color, stretch toward us below a sky nearly filled with cream-white clouds in this horizontal landscape painting. Together, the monochromatic plots create the impression of a patchwork quilt, with large areas of pale pink, butter yellow, bright white, and baby blue. A person walks across the plots to our right. The horizon line comes almost halfway up the painting and is lined with dark brown houses with tall, pitched roofs. Two barren trees twist into the cloudy sky. The loose, short, parallel brushstrokes and touches of paint create a soft, hazy effect.
Colors in this work
Details
- Artist
- Vincent van Gogh
- Date
- c. 1883
- Medium
- oil on canvas on wood
- Dimensions
- overall: 48.9 x 66 cm (19 1/4 x 26 in.) framed: 71.1 x 88.9 x 8.3 cm (28 x 35 x 3 1/4 in.)
- Department
- CF
- Holding institution
- National Gallery of Art
- Palette
-
Select a color to find related artworks.
- Image provider
- national-gallery-of-art
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Art Genome Taxonomy
11 tags
Subject Matter
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Flora Both · 99%
The image clearly depicts extensive cultivated flower beds, and the catalog title identifies the work as Flower Beds in Holland.
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Landscapes Both · 99%
The composition shows an outdoor scene of fields, horizon, sky, trees, and houses; the catalog identifies the work as a horizontal landscape painting.
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Rural Life Visual · 97%
Farmhouses, planted plots, hedges, paths, and a person in the fields establish a rural agricultural setting.
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Atmospheric Landscapes Both · 92%
The broad cloud-filled sky and distant landscape have a softened, hazy appearance, which the catalog explicitly notes.
Visual Qualities
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Earth Tones Visual · 95%
The scene is dominated by muted browns, ochres, greens, creams, and subdued blues, with pale pink, yellow, white, and blue flower plots providing color accents.
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Patterns Both · 97%
Repeated rectangular flower beds separated by paths form a strongly patterned, patchwork-like organization across the foreground; the catalog also describes the plots as creating the impression of a patchwork quilt.
Medium and Techniques
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Oil Painting Metadata · 99%
The supplied medium is oil on canvas on wood.
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Painting Metadata · 99%
The catalog classifies the work as a painting.
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Large Brushstrokes/Loose Brushwork Both · 98%
The surface is built from many short, parallel strokes and distinct touches of paint, especially across the flower beds and sky; the catalog specifically describes loose, short, parallel brushstrokes.
Time Periods
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19th Century Art Metadata · 99%
The catalog dates the painting to circa 1883, placing it within the nineteenth century.
Geographic Regions
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Dutch Art Both · 91%
The title identifies Holland, and the image depicts a rural Dutch setting with cultivated flower fields and low pitched-roof houses.
Source & rights
Vincent van Gogh. Flower Beds in Holland. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.
High-resolution sources
- IIIF image service ↗ 35,365 × 25,890 · National Gallery Of Art · Available