Van Gogh's Sunflowers: which canvas hangs in Amsterdam?
The famous vase is one version in a larger series. The Amsterdam painting from 1889 stays in the Van Gogh Museum because of its fragility.
The Sunflowers in the Van Gogh Museum is one painting from a series. The Amsterdam canvas was made in Arles in January 1889 and measures 95 by 73 centimetres. The collection page lists it as currently on view.
The museum distinguishes five famous versions of sunflowers in a vase that are now in museums. They are in Munich, London, Tokyo, Philadelphia and Amsterdam. Another version is privately owned; yet another painting was lost in the Second World War.
According to the collection page, the first two versions hung in Paul Gauguin's room in the Yellow House. Later Van Gogh painted two free repetitions. One of them is the canvas that hangs in Amsterdam. The Amsterdam work is a separate oil painting by Van Gogh.
According to the museum, Van Gogh used three shades of yellow for these large flower pieces. Within that limited palette he gave flowers, table and background each their own treatment.
According to the museum, the sunflowers were meant to symbolise gratitude. Van Gogh was thinking of a triptych with the flower pieces and a portrait. The collection page also mentions that Gauguin saw the paintings as characteristic of Van Gogh.
The Amsterdam painting was lightly restored and examined in early 2019. The museum concluded that the canvas is stable but fragile. It therefore no longer lends the painting out for travel. The museum says visitors can continue to see it there.
A regular adult ticket costs €25 in 2026. Visitors under eighteen and Museumkaart holders have free admission. Tickets are available only online and every visitor needs a ticket with a start time.