Irises (1889 painting) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Irises |
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| Original title, in French: Les Iris | |
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| Artist | Vincent van Gogh |
| Year | May 1889 |
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| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 71 cm × 93 cm (28 in × 36+5⁄8 in) |
| Location | J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, California |
Irises is a famous painting by the Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. It shows beautiful iris flowers. Van Gogh painted this artwork in May 1889. This was during his last year before he passed away in 1890. He painted it while staying at a special hospital called Saint Paul-de-Mausole in France.
Van Gogh began painting Irises soon after he arrived at the hospital. He worked outside in the hospital garden, painting what he saw. He felt that painting helped him to stay calm and focused. He even called painting "the lightning conductor for my illness." This meant it helped him deal with his struggles.
What Makes Irises Special?
This painting is different from some of Van Gogh's other works. It feels soft and light, not tense. It shows life and beauty without sadness.
Many of Van Gogh's paintings, including Irises, were inspired by Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints. These prints often used strong outlines and bright, flat colors. They also showed things from unusual angles, sometimes very close up. You can see these ideas in Irises.
Van Gogh thought of Irises as a "study." This means he saw it as practice or an experiment. Because of this, he didn't make any drawings for it first. However, his brother, Theo, loved the painting.
Theo's Support for Irises
Theo quickly sent Irises to an art show in September 1889. It was shown with another famous painting by Vincent, Starry Night Over the Rhone. Theo wrote to Vincent about the exhibition. He said Irises "strikes the eye from afar." He also said, "The Irises are a beautiful study full of air and life." Today, Irises is known as one of Van Gogh's most famous paintings.
Who Owned Irises?
The first person to own Irises was Julien "Père" Tanguy. He was an art dealer and also a paint maker. Van Gogh even painted his portrait three times! In 1892, Tanguy sold Irises to Octave Mirbeau. Mirbeau was an art critic and one of the first people to support Van Gogh's art. He paid 300 francs for the painting.
In 1987, Irises became the most expensive painting ever sold at that time. It was sold for US$53.9 million to a person named Alan Bond. However, Bond later had trouble paying for it. In 1990, Irises was sold again to the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California. You can still see it there today!
