Art Institute presents ‘Van Gogh and the Avant-Garde: The Modern Landscape’

From 1882 and 1890, five notable Post-Impressionist artists drew inspiration from villages on the outskirts of Paris, where they experimented with brushstrokes and bold colors. “Van Gogh and the Avant-Garde: The Modern Landscape” at the Art Institute will showcase more than 75 works from this time by Vincent van Gogh, Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, Emile Bernard and Charles Angrand.

“The pioneering work by Seurat, Signac, Bernard, and Angrand in the northwestern suburbs of Paris prompted many artists, including Van Gogh, to rethink the possibilities of painting,” said Jacquelyn Coutré, the Eleanor Wood Prince Associate Curator, Painting and Sculpture of Europe, in an announcement Monday. “It was here, in this location and in conjunction with these artists, that he learned to energize his brushstroke and to ‘see color’, both important contributions to his rapid development as an artist.”

These artists were drawn to the area by the clashing of recreation and industry as the Seine River, a popular spot for leisure activities, saw a time of rapid industrial development.

“The bringing together of extremes — the countryside as a whole and the bustle here (in the city) — gives me new ideas,” Van Gogh wrote in a letter.

Many of the pieces are from private collections and are rarely viewed publicly. The exhibition will feature 25 works by Van Gogh, including paintings from three triptychs that will be displayed together for the first time.

“Van Gogh and the Avant-Garde: The Modern Landscape” runs May 14 through Sept. 4 at the Art Institute, 111 S. Michigan Ave.; $10 exhibition ticket in addition to admission, more information at artic.edu