Why Vincent van Gogh painted his bedroom to look like a place of rest

Art · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Vincent van Gogh created three versions of his Arles bedroom, using bold, flat colors to evoke tranquility rather than the nervous energy often associated with his style. Though the room was physically trapezoidal and cramped, he sought to capture a sense of unshakeable repose through deliberate, simplified artistic choices.

In mid-October 1888, Van Gogh began the first iteration of his bedroom at the Yellow House in Arles. He aimed to convey a sense of peaceful sleep, intentionally omitting shadows to mimic the flat, plain aesthetic of Japanese prints. He described the palette to his brother Theo as a collection of vibrant, contrasting hues: violet walls, red tiles, yellow furniture, and green accents. By removing depth and detail, he hoped the image would soothe the viewer's imagination.

The physical space itself was irregular, featuring a trapezoid shape with an obtuse angle on one side and an acute one on the other. Van Gogh produced three distinct versions of the composition, which can be identified by the specific portraits hanging on the wall. The first version, created during his time in Arles, remained in his estate and is now held by the Vincent van Gogh Foundation. The second, painted in September 1889 while he was in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, is housed at the Art Institute of Chicago.

The third version, a smaller reduction intended as a gift for his mother and sister, is part of the French national collection at the Musée d'Orsay. These paintings were not merely static records of his living quarters; they were deeply personal projects. The first version was damaged by flooding while the artist was hospitalized, prompting him to create a repetition. Later, in 2016, all three versions were reunited for an exhibition in Chicago, offering a rare opportunity to compare the subtle variations in his approach to the same intimate, domestic subject.

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