Inspired by Vincent van Gough

Knocked off in one hour- L’Arlésienne: Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux

I’m always absorbing the world through color combinations and juxtapositions.  So on a recent visit to The Met, it’s no surprise that the striking yellow and mint green are what caught my eye first about this Vincent van Gough painting.  But the museum label and details are what really drew me in.  There are two versions of this portrait of Maria, Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux - the proprietress of the Café de la Gare van Gough frequented in 1888. Apparently the first version van Gough “knocked off in one hour” in a competitive posing session with Paul Gauguin.  (swipe to connect all the dots) 

With the limited time away from my own “Café”, Stationæry, and the kids, I just love that I encountered this story.  The obvious parallel being that Marie, a restaurant wife like me, looking so pulled together but revealing for this moment a tired expression.  I’m intrigued that van Gough and Gauguin had a competitive 1-hour session - a wonderful reminder that great work or just work in general can result from pressure and time constraints.  The final lesson I was reminded of is that creativity takes practice and many revisions.  Even with my restaurant wife-limited stretches of time just create. 

Citations: 

1. L’Arlésienne: Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux, 1888-89 (see my photo above)

2. Museum details card at the Met (see my photo below)

3. L’Arlésienne: Madame Ginoux with Gloves and Parasol, 1888 

4. L’Arlésienne, Paul Gauguin, Nov 1888