Mariëtta de Bruïne
Colour and Culture
16 December 2008
VAN GOGH-COLOURED PRODUCTS
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Necklace ‘Flor’ in Van Gogh colours € 183,00 The unique pieces reflect not only the bright colours from nature, but also those from Van Gogh’s works. A surprising gift. |
Necklace in van Gogh colours! It seems pretty pricy, but probably is worth for having such pieces of world famous artist’s colours. Tempting, isn’t it? This product is sold from Van Gogh Museum shop, both offline and online (shop inside of the Van Gogh Museum at Museumplein, Amsterdam and vangoghmuseumshop.nl). Vincent van Gogh’s popularity and commodification of his artworks are beyond all doubt, especially when you look into the tourism universe in Amsterdam. Not only ‘official’ museum shop commercializing his paintings, but also there is no single shop that doesn’t have any van Gogh souvenirs on busy touristic streets. Regardless of his paintings being ‘exploited’ or ‘democratized’ by becoming into countless products, it is notable how many and how various kinds of van Gogh products are produced, and equivalently, consumed. Focusing on colour adaptations or selections from van Gogh’s works, looking into van Gogh-coloured products can give us a little slice of truth of colouration in art and consumerism.
VAN GOGH AND HIS PALETTE
“What colour is in a picture, enthusiasm is in life,” van Gogh wrote in one of the letters to his brother Theo (Van Gogh, 1885/1886) and this summarizes importance of colouration in his artworks. His realization and practice onto the canvas had achieved significant and historical impact to the art since then. The convention during his time in the Netherlands was to render the local colours to the canvas intact, thus his colour theory of contrasting colours to make them harmonized and expressive was found unique later (Walker, 1981). Yet, not all of van Gogh’s paintings are bright and colourful. As it can be easily noticed from his early works, those are very dark and black. Walker, from the same article, mentioned that van Gogh’s attitude toward life was reflected on his works as his confidence—that can be read from his letters—and bright colour usages mostly coincided (1981). It can be assumed that his family except his brother Theo regarded him as ‘failure’ which affected him to use grey and dull colours, whereas later with Theo’s both monetary and mental support, he could have achieved vivid colour exploration from the world. Other letters to Theo written after van Gogh left Holland show how much he became enthusiastic about using complimentary and vibrant colour relationships: “a meadow full of bright yellow buttercups, a ditch with irises, green leaves and purple flowers, the town in the background, some gray willows, and a strip of blue sky…(letter on 12 May 1888) ” Contrasts between violet/orange, red/green, blue/yellow and also various degrees of yellows and oranges became the very typical ‘Van Gogh palettes’ (Leeuw, 1997). Artist’s own emphasis and concentration on colours from visual harmony, distinctiveness as well as natural truth makes his art unique and beloved from many people around the world.
VAN GOGH-COLOURED PRODUCTS
Apart from colour master’s intention, how van Gogh’s works are reproduced or made into products seems very interesting in that it can reveal what kind of colours are preferred, attractive, and profitable. Based on the Van Gogh ‘official’ product sales-points—‘vangoghmuseumshop.nl’, the Van Gogh Museum shop inside of the museum and a souvenir shop (Dam Square Souvenir) located at the touristic centre—central question is focused on the colouration of van Gogh-coloured products.
Window display of ‘Dam Square Souvenirs’
Not every piece of van Gogh’s paintings is made into product. There were more than 440 van Gogh-related products including reproductions, multimedia, accessories, house-wares etc. Focusing on products which are meant to be usable or decorative rather than mere reproductions or prints, it is interesting to find that only limited numbers of van Gogh’s works are covering those commodities. Those were:
• Vase with Sunflowers, Jan 1889
• The Bedroom, Oct 1888
• Almond Branches in Blossom, Feb 1890
• Vase with Irises against a Yellow Background, May 1890
• Butterflies and Poppies, Spring 1890
• The Yellow House, 1888
• Fishing Boats on the Beach at les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, June 1888
• Crows in the Wheatfields, July 1890.
Art pieces above were drawn in the period between 1888 and 1890. It was time when van Gogh was spending in Paris (1888) and southern parts of France (Arles). Also considering that he died in July 1890, those are his last and probably ‘perfected’ works. As it was mentioned above in ‘VAN GOGH AND HIS PALETTE’, van Gogh showed fascination towards colours—bright, contrasting ones—during his staying in France; Sunflowers and the Yellow house are covered with best known ‘yellowish’ van Gogh colour; the Bedroom, Almond Blossoms and Fishing Boats are showing off light blue hues; Irises against a Yellow Background and Crows in the Wheatfields are good examples of his exploration of blue and yellow contrasts while Butterflies and Poppies is for red/green. Selected paintings contain colours that are salable. This fact becomes evident compared to his early works, for instance, his other quite-known piece, Potato Eaters (1885), with dead tones. There weren’t any products with this painting image except a postcard set.
It implies firstly that people recognize his later works as his ‘genuine’ ones since there are some people who buy those products just to have representation of his works as souvenirs. Second, art is art but products are products. Art can cover dark and even strange figures in the name of the Art. However, ‘aestheticization’ is much more underlined in so-called art products, therefore brighter and visual colours seem to be valued. Lastly, gender difference was appearing with colours. In a brief interview with one of the saleswomen in the Van Gogh Museum shop, when being asked ‘which reproductions (posters) are sold the most’, she answered that undoubtedly number one is the Sunflowers, followed by Almond Blossoms mostly from women, Crows in the Wheatfields from men. I asked why for the latter comment, and her reply was that men usually don’t like pretty yellow or pink or light blue hues.
Crows in the Wheatfields (left)
Almond Blossoms (right)
This colour divide notion according to gender was also to be found in other products. House wares typically concerns of women’s such as porcelains, mugs and dishes were fully smeared with ‘pretty’ colours of flower paintings.
Quality of colour representation was very different according to the products—deciding whether it is ‘official/arty’ or ‘kitschy’. Official ones are merchandized by the Van Gogh Museum, sold only in the museum shops and also one ‘official’ souvenir shop at Dam Square. Those ones were in high quality, exactly the same colours and prints from the original artworks. They seem like even slight change of the painting (especially colours) is disrespectful for the artist. Compared to those, ‘unofficial’ souvenir shops mainly that are spread around Rokin and Damrak, the central area in Amsterdam always busy with tourists, were selling poor imitations of van Gogh’s. Useless to say that shapes are cut or made into new, colours of them were very different from originals in the museum. Reflecting the iconized van Gogh’s sunflowerish-yellow, products found in those touristic areas were more yellowish or having yellow background.
Van Gogh ‘kitschy’ mug in one of the souvenir shops
At last, van Gogh-colour marketing in products was beyond imagination. Below three pictures are examples of those: ‘Sunflowers’ Vase which is said to have been adapted and inspired from van Gogh’s famous Sunflowers painting; Bracelet that “reminds one of Van Gogh’s use of bright colours”, according to online museum shop’s explanation; men’s T-shirts with unique sky blue used in Vincent van Gogh’s Almond Blossom’s background. Of course, no artist –except real creator of the colour like Yves Klein—can claim that certain colour is belong to him or her, because colours have pre-existed the artists all the time. Yet, it can be argued that certain distinguishable usage/mix of colours that are different from other artists can make those colours ‘the artist’s’. In this way, extracts of colours from van Gogh’s paintings seem to be brilliant idea of selling products, despite its expensiveness partly owing to the artist’s name value.
‘Sunflowers’ Vase, Bracelet in Van Gogh colours, Men’s ‘Almond Blossom’ T-shirt
COLOURS OF SPIRIT, COLOURS ON SURFACE
There had been some critics and psychologists who were telling that van Gogh’s intense colours are the results of his mental illness. Yet, through reading his own writings that continuously came up with ideas on colours, it can be more correct that van Gogh was the pathfinder in colouration, not a mad artist. Even if so, feeling of awe and vividness coming from his artworks, the fact doesn’t make any different impressions to viewers. A lot of visitors to the museum devoted for one artist which is quite rare case prove his popularity. There might have been commercialized effect of van Gogh’s paintings by being omnipresent. This popularity again attracts people to come to see the originals. Chain may end by people purchasing some parts of their memories—souvenirs. For many people it can certainly be his colouration. Therefore, selling van Gogh-coloured products is contribution to democratization of his bright colours and satisfaction to people who feel van Gogh as ‘master of palette’. Or van Gogh himself has been achieved his perfection of colour—that shares feeling of harmony and balance with general public.
Nevertheless, it is very difficult to get rid of capitalistic impression by looking at van Gogh products. In a way, it can be said: ‘certain van Gogh’s colours are productive’. Many people are attracted to it, and sometimes willing to pay a bit more to get some of his colours that eventually brings benefits to the host—the Van Gogh Museum which is belong to the Dutch nation and tourism economy. From this cycle, we can expect that van Gogh products will not finish by 440 articles but more. Also, it was disappointing to find no specific information on his colours with the products. Moving from problem-child under dull sky to freedoms and sunshine must have struck van Gogh’s life immensely. However, without an explanation on his colour spirit, some products were just labelled as ‘van Gogh’s colour’ achieving extra-premiums. I wonder how many people buy the fancy intense coloured necklace thinking of his dark coloured life reflected in early works. Would it be too much concerned if I say that colours on surface have to be sold with colours of spirit?
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