Van Gogh Museum

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Lore & Background

The Van Gogh Museum, located on Museumplein in Amsterdam-Zuid, consists of two distinct architectural structures. The main building, designed by Gerrit Rietveld, is a four-story rectangular structure housing the permanent collection, with a shop, café, and introductory exhibition on the ground floor, chronological displays of Van Gogh’s works on the first floor, restoration information and minor temporary exhibitions on the second, and works by his contemporaries on the third. The second building, an oval, three-story wing designed by Kisho Kurokawa, is used for major temporary exhibitions and is accessed via a tunnel from the Rietveld building. Sunflowers are displayed outside the entrance seasonally. The museum holds the world’s largest collection of Van Gogh’s work, including 200 paintings, 400 drawings, and 700 letters. Its defining characteristic is this unparalleled collection, which chronicles the artist’s entire career, from early works like *The Potato Eaters* and *Avenue of Poplars in Autumn* from his Nuenen period (1880–1885) to pieces from his Antwerp stay, such as *Skull of a Skeleton with Burning Cigarette*. The collection originated from works unsold at Van Gogh’s death, passed to his brother Theo, then to Theo’s widow, Johanna van Gogh-Bonger, who sold many to promote his legacy while retaining a private collection, which was later inherited by her son and eventually transferred to a foundation. The museum opened on 2 June 1973, and its buildings underwent renovations in 1998–1999 and a major closure from September 2012 to May 2013. In 2017, it attracted 2.3 million visitors, making it the most-visited museum in the Netherlands and the 23rd-most-visited art museum worldwide.

Reader's Guide

The museum’s collection originated from the unsold works of Vincent van Gogh, which passed to his brother Theo upon his death in 1890. After Theo died six months later, his widow, Johanna van Gogh-Bonger, took possession of the art. She sold many paintings to promote Van Gogh’s work while keeping a private collection, which later passed to her son, Vincent Willem van Gogh, in 1925. This collection was loaned to the Stedelijk Museum for many years before being transferred to the state-initiated Vincent van Gogh Foundation in 1962. Johanna’s efforts in organizing exhibitions in the Netherlands and abroad were crucial to Van Gogh’s posthumous fame. The museum opened on 2 June 1973, designed by Gerrit Rietveld, with a later wing added by Kisho Kurokawa. It holds the world’s largest Van Gogh collection, including 200 paintings, 400 drawings, and 700 letters. In 2017, it attracted 2.3 million visitors, making it the most-visited museum in the Netherlands and the 23rd-most-visited art museum globally. The museum has experienced notable art thefts: in 1991, twenty paintings, including *The Potato Eaters*, were stolen but recovered within 35 minutes, though three works were severely torn. In 2002, two paintings were stolen and recovered in Italy in 2016. In 2013, the museum unveiled *Sunset at Montmajour*, the first full-size Van Gogh canvas discovered since 1928, previously misattributed in a Norwegian attic. The museum also launched the Meet Vincent Van Gogh Experience, a global immersive exhibition.