Van Gogh was very fond of the small French town Arles. He was overwhelmed by the kindness of the people and was very much inspired by the beautiful nature. Vincent’s inspiration by nature and surroundings of Arles can be clearly seen in his work. Vincent believed that the tender and distinction of nature were only to be found in the midi. He loved it out here.
The arena of Arles organised bullfights on a regular base. At the end of the 19th century bullfighting was a more common sport than it is nowadays. A visit to the arena was, and still is in some country’s, a nice way of recreation. Vincent seemed to use this opportunity to capture all the spectators together on his canvas. In this painting Van Gogh succeeded in capturing the busy atmosphere during a bullfight.
It’s clear to see that it was very crowded in the Arena: there are people who sit quietly, but also people who are walking through the audience and others seem to encourage the bullfighters. All together it seems like Vincent created this painting in a bit of a rush, while watching the bullfights himself.
In a letter from Vincent van Gogh to A. H. Koning (Arles, 29 May 1888) Vincent tells about the bullfights.
“At present there are bullfights almost every Sunday. Last Sunday a bull jumped the hoarding and made a rush at the spectators' seats, but the arenas here are built so high that no harm can be done.”
Current Location: Hermitage, St Petersburg, Russia
Reminds me of Gauguin
Vincent created this painting is December 1888, 2 months after the arrival of his friend and artist Paul Gauguin. When I see this painting It reminds me of Gauguin: the strong contours and dark colors which Vincent used. Therefore I strongly believe that Vincent was inspired by the works of Gauguin..
This painting also features some Japanese influences. If you take a closer look you can see that a few ladies in the audience wear a Japanese umbrella. A small but interesting detail of this painting..
Arena painted by Van Gogh in headlines
Today this Arena got a lot of attention in the news: A child matador was banned from this French Arena.
The mexican child, Michel Lagravere Peniche, is only ten years old and the French authorities decided that it is too dangerous to put a 30 kg child in front of a 200 kg bull. Anti-bullfighters blocked the arena in Arles to protest against the fight. This crowd probably looked a bit different from the spectators painted by Van Gogh!
Click here to read more about the banned child matador