Van Gogh Lives!Nuenen, province of Noord- Brabant. A farmer drinking coffee in his kitchen. Van Gogh, who lived and worked in Nuenen, often reproduced the boorish characteristics of the peasants in the area. Even in modern times some farmers lead a sober and traditional lifestyle, averse from modern facilities such as television or telephone. This is one of them. His grandfather personally knew Van Gogh.

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Van Gogh Lives!

Nieuw-Amsterdam, province of Drenthe. Vincent van Gogh's room in the former ‘Logement Scholte’. Van Gogh lived here for several months in autumn 1883. Rumour has it that he paid for his rent in paintings – a gesture that was not appreciated by his landlord, who ruthlessly burnt them. The former lodge is now a museum and café-restaurant, and was renamed Van Gogh House (Van Gogh Huis). During his stay in the village Van Gogh reproduced the local drawbridge (‘Ophaalbrug in Nieuw-Amsterdam’), among other works.

Van Gogh Van Gogh This autumn the eccentric artist Vincent van Gogh attracts the attention of Dutchmen and visitors alike. A new exhibition at the Van Gogh Museum brings the artist to life, showcasing his rarely displayed letters in combination with his world- famous work. Unknown to most Van Gogh- lovers, however, is the fact that the atmosphere that inspired the artist, and many physical objects of his work, still survive in rural Holland. In a country the size of Holland it would be a shame not to go out and experience what moved Van Gogh over a century ago. On the following pages Dutch Image paints you the way in a series of stunning pictures.

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Van Gogh Lives!Van Gogh Van Gogh Lives!Lives!This autumn the eccentric artist Vincent van Gogh attracts the attention of Dutchmen and visitors alike. A new exhibition at the Van Gogh Museum brings the artist to life, showcasing his rarely displayed letters in combination with his world- famous work. Unknown to most Van Gogh- lovers, however, is the fact that the atmosphere that inspired the artist, and many physical objects of his work, still survive in rural Holland. In a country the size of Holland it would be a shame not to go out and experience what moved Van Gogh over a century ago. On the following pages Dutch Image paints you the way in a series of stunning pictures.

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PHOTOGRAPHY JURJEN DRENTHTEXT ALLARD DE ROOI

Netersel, an authentic village in the area where Van Gogh grew up, province of Noord-Brabant. In the background the pretty church-tower of the local ‘Parochiekerk van de HH. Antonius van Padua en Brigida’ is visible – quite a name for a village of humble proportions. Netersel is part of the ‘Agt Zaligheden’, a group of eight villages with the suffix ‘–sel’.

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From 9 October 2009 to 3 January 2010 the

Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam hosts a

fascinating exhibition, in which more than

120 original letters by Van Gogh are shown

alongside the works that he was writing

about. The exhibition is the culmination of

the prestigious Van Gogh Letters Project,

also resulting in a dedicated website and a

beautiful, six-volume publication.

Van Gogh’s lettersThe arTisT speaKs

Van Gogh Museum | Museumplein Entrance: Paulus Potterstraat 7 | Amsterdam

Phone +31 (0) 20 570 5200

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Zundert, province of Noord-Brabant. The local Protestant church where Van Gogh's father used to work as a vicar. Vincent himself was born in Zundert.

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Few people realise that the country as it was seen and painted by Vincent

van Gogh 125 years ago, can still be seen today. Dutch Image photographer

Jurjen Drenth visited the places that we know so well from Vincent’s paint-

ings and drawings. Many windmills, farms, lanes and fields are still there,

tucked away around sleepy towns like Nuenen in the provinces of Noord-

Brabant and Drenthe. The photographer met farmers, who still live in his-

torical conditions without telephone and tv.

Drinking their traditional coffee, harvesting potatoes, or inspecting the sun-

flower fields — Drenth managed to paint their pictures again. 125 Years after

Van Gogh, but with similar result.

Van Gogh’s holland

Zundert, province of Noord-Brabant (above). Country estate 'De Pannen-hoef', located be-tween Etten-Leur and Zundert, was frequented by Van Gogh.

Sprundel, province of Noord-Brabant (below). Portrait of a Vincent van Gogh-look-alike.

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Zundert, province of Noord-Brabant. A farmer and his daughter inspecting their sunflower field. Zundert is the birth-place of Vincent van Gogh, whose paintings of sunflowers became world-famous.

Van Gogh lived in Nuenen for two years. In the village and it’s

vicinity 21 buildings and locations remind of him. They can be

visited on a signposted, 5 km walking or cycling tour. The local

information centre houses a permanent exhibition.

Noord-Brabant, Nuenen

Nuenen, province of Noord-Brabant. Modern interpretation of Vincent van Gogh’s famous work ‘The Potato Eaters’ (‘De Aardappeleters’), which was painted in the same village in 1885. The family in the picture is eating french fries, a potato-based snack.

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Nuenen, province of Noord- Brabant. Reformed church (Hervormde kerk) with surrounding trees, reproduced by Van Gogh in 1884.

Nuenen, province of Noord-Brabant. A farmer working in his field in what appears to be a typical Van Gogh-scene. The windmill ‘De Roosdonck’ appears in one of Van Gogh’s drawings. The dwelling of one of the models in Van Gogh’s famous painting ‘The Potato Eaters’ is situated in the same area.

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Noord-Brabant poplar lanesnuenen/liempde

Liempde (left) and Nuenen (right), province of Noord-Brabant. Roads lined with poplars. These poplar lanes are included in the Dutch Heritage list. Vincent van Gogh often painted them during his ‘Brabant period’.

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Noord-Brabant poplar lanes

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Drenthe

Zweeloo, province of Drenthe (above). Early morning light on a barn in the charming village of Zweeloo. The church in the background appears in Vincent van Gogh’s paintings. It dates from the 13th century.

Gees, province of Drenthe (below). Farmer in front of his farm house. Gees is a tiny, but charming village, that still survives in much of it’s original state. Vast moors and forests surround the village, creating an excellent location for walks and cycling tours.

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Havelterberg, vicinity of Havelte, province of Drenthe. Early morning scene of a shepherd and his flock of sheep, crossing the heath of the Havelterberg. This hill houses two dolmen (‘hunebed’) and other prehistoric grave sites. The village of Havelte is known as the ‘Pearl of Drenthe’. The area is popular with walkers, especially when the blossoming heather turns the landscape purple.

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Barger-Compascuum, province of Drenthe. Man loading blocks of peat (dry turf) at the open-air museum Veenpark. The museum highlights the history of the peat area, starting from around 1870. The picture resembles a painting by Van Gogh, who lived in the area for several months.

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Grazing sheep in Nature Reserve ‘Het Amsterdamsche Veld’ near the village of Klazienaveen, province of Drenthe. In 1850 a group of investors from Amsterdam purchased this peat area – hence the name. In those days the province of Drenthe was sometimes compared with California, except that it was peat – not oil – that brought prosperity. Vincent van Gogh reproduced the area in a number of his works.

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