Vincent Van Gogh Portrait Of Dr. Gachet
1890 Fine Art Painting
Portrait of Dr. Gachet is one of the most revered paintings by the Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. There are two authenticated versions of the portrait, both painted in June 1890 at Auvers-sur-Oise. Both show Gachet sitting at a table and leaning his head on his right arm but they are easily differentiated in color and style. In 1990, the first version fetched a record price of $82.5 million ($75 million, plus a 10 percent buyer’s commission) when sold at auction in New York. When accounting for inflation, this is still the highest price paid for art at a public auction.
Van Gogh painted Gachet resting his right elbow on a red table, head in hand. Two yellow books as well as the purple medicinal herb foxglove are displayed on the table. The foxglove in the painting is a plant from which digitalis is extracted for the treatment of certain heart complaints, perhaps an attribute of Gachet as a physician.
