From 16 January to 25 May 2025, the Van Gogh Museum presents The Power of Pigments, a presentation offering visitors a refreshing perspective of colourful drawings by 19th-century artists.
The presentation includes a selection of highlights from the museum’s collection, works that are rarely on public display due to their fragility. Several of the works have never been exhibited before.
Odilon Redon, The Summit (La cime), 1894. Pastel and black chalk on paper, 92.8 × 76 cm. Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (State of the Netherlands)
Drawing in colour became a significant art form in the 19th century, owing in part to the invention of new synthetic pigments. Artists from various movements embraced techniques such as pastel and watercolour to express themselves on paper. Some chose a realistic style, aiming to depict reality as faithfully as possible.
Others experimented with new techniques: from dividing colour areas into tiny dots (Pointillism) to capturing fleeting impressions of light and atmosphere (Impressionism) and creating dreamlike imagery (Symbolism). These works were often exhibited alongside paintings and became popular with a new group of collectors from the upper middle class.
The Van Gogh Museum has collected pastels and watercolours by those who inspired Vincent van Gogh, by his contemporaries, and by those whom he inspired for many years. In addition to drawings by Van Gogh, this presentation also features work by artists including Jean-François Millet, Camille Pissarro, Paul Gauguin, Odilon Redon, Henry Somm, Louis Anquetin and Armand Guillaumin.
Curator Fleur Roos Rosa de Carvalho:
‘This presentation is a remarkable opportunity to discover the breadth of the museum’s collection. Our collection extends far beyond solely the work of Van Gogh, and introduces how drawing flourished in France at the end of the 19th century.’
The Power of Pigments is on display on the second floor of the Rietveld Building, in a gallery that is used for temporary presentations of works in the museum collection. The presentation is accessible with a regular entrance ticket.
