Vincent van Gogh is known all over the world. Few people know that he also stayed in Drenthe, for a period of three months, in the southeastern part of the province.
Five paintings, around fifteen drawings and a series of beautiful letters to his brother Theo were preserved from the period during which he stayed in Drenthe. We take you to the places that inspired him.
"I breathed the heathland air for a month. I absolutely needed that. I sat down by a peat fire made by peasants, with a cradle beside it. I speak calmly, I think calmly now." - Vincent van Gogh about his stay in Drenthe
Get to know Van Gogh's primal landscape by bicycle! Follow three different routes, see what Vincent saw and what inspiration he found. The routes will take you past viewing panels with listening stories and large murals.
Discover the routes
On 11 September 1883, Vincent van Gogh got off the train in Hoogeveen. Exactly 140 years later, on 11 September 2023, the very first exhibition on his period in Drenthe will start. It is a must see for all his admirers.
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In 1883, Vincent van Gogh decided to leave for Drenthe. He was penniless, and the relationship with his fiancée Sien had just gone on the rocks. That also meant that he had said goodbye to Sien's little daughter and son, to whom he had become very much attached. The painter Anthon van Rappard, who was still a good friend of his at the time, had already been in Drenthe in 1882 and had made a number of exquisite paintings there. Van Gogh was inspired by those paintings. Moreover, it seemed to him that life in the countryside of Drenthe would be cheaper than in The Hague. And thus on 11 September, he got on the last train from The Hague to Drenthe with a broken heart.
In Drenthe, Van Gogh focussed on painting landscapes and figures. Not only did he see the beauty of the peat landscape of Drenthe, but he particularly had an eye for the common people and the hard life of the agricultural workers. This can clearly be seen in the paintings 'Peasant Burning Weeds' and 'The Peat Barge'.
In the village of Nieuw Amsterdam you can find the Van Gogh House, the place where Vincent stayed for 2 months. It is the only publicly accessible house in The Netherlands in which he lived and worked. His room looks just like it was then. View everything at your own pace, book a personal tour, or sign up for a workshop and paint at the location where Van Gogh did that too!
Visit the Van Gogh House
"How I wish that we could walk together and paint together here. I believe that the country would win you over and persuade you." - Vincent van Gogh in a letter to his brother Theo about Drenthe"
