VOICES FROM HISTORY
“Gauguin was telling me the other day that he’d seen a painting by Claude Monet of sunflowers… well, he likes mine better. I don’t agree — only, don’t think that I’m weakening.”
— Vincent van Gogh, letter to Theo (no. 741), January 1889
“The sunflower is mine, in a way.”
— Vincent van Gogh, the same letter, January 1889
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Tessa Marchetti · Jun 2026
As a painter I am supposed to say something sophisticated about the brushwork, but honestly: it is just joy. Fourteen kinds of yellow and pure joy.
Hassan Karimi · Jun 2026
And he painted them to decorate a guest room for a friend. The most famous flowers in art history started as a housewarming gesture.
Claude Monet — Bouquet of Sunflowers
Paul Cézanne — Flowers in a blue vase
Imitator of Vincent van Gogh — Landscape
Adolphe Monticelli — Flowers in a Blue Vase
Pierre-Auguste Renoir — Vase of Flowers (Vase de fleurs )
Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890) — Two Poplars in the Alp
Pierre-Auguste Renoir — Bouquet of Chrysanthemums
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Odilon Redon — Bouquet in a Chinese Vase
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Auguste Renoir — Bouquet of Chrysanthemums
Imitator of Vincent van Gogh — Portrait of Vincent van Gogh
