Soup Distribution in a Public Soup Kitchen
Vincent van Gogh (1853 - 1890), The Hague, March 1883
chalk, brush and paint, watercolour, on paper,
56.5 cm x 44.4 cm
Credits (obliged to state): Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation)
Van Gogh saw soup being distributed at the public soup kitchen in The Hague and made sketches on the spot. Later he produced this drawing, slightly modifying the scene. He did so in his studio, using models. So the scene in the picture is actually staged.
The woman on the right can be identified as Sien – a former prostitute with whom Van Gogh live for a time. She posed for him quite often, as did her daughter, here wearing the white bonnet. The baby on the left is probably her other child.