A New Work Discovered by Vincent Van Gogh: A Preliminary Study of Painting …

The so-called “erosion study” measures 48.8 x 30 cm and shows a man sitting exhausted in a chair with his head in his hands. The business is owned by a private individual who wishes to remain anonymous. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam was asked to investigate the source of the drawing.

Theo Midendorp, chief researcher at the Museum, concluded that the work fit stylistically among the many studies of form that Van Gogh made during his time in The Hague. According to him, the association with Worn Out is obvious. The researcher also learns about the way the drawing was created. “In terms of the use of materials, you can also come across everything you could expect in a Van Gogh drawing from this period: a carpenter’s pencil as thick as watercolor paper as medium, and coarse watercolor paper as a stand, and then fixed with a mixture of water and milk.” Where the damage can be seen on the corners – also with the usual way Van Gogh glued a sheet of paper to his drawing board, ie with starch wads.

According to the museum, “Worn Out” is “one of Van Gogh’s most powerful figure drawings from the Hague period”. In letters to his brother Theo and friend Anton van Rapper, Van Gogh described in detail how this drawing appeared. According to the museum, the study provides special insight into the working process.

Museum director Emily Gordinker is delighted with the discovery. “It is very rare for a new work to be attributed to Van Gogh. We are proud to be able to share this early drawing and its story with visitors to our museum.”

The last time Van Gogh was discovered was in 2018. It was related to the Paris painting “Montmartre Hill with a Quarry” by the Van Vlissingen Art Foundation. The last painting – a rarity – was added to the painter’s work in 2013; “Sunset at Montmajour”.

The preliminary study can be seen in the collection’s permanent display through January 2, along with Worn Out and other works by Van Gogh from the same period.