Exhibition Yellow. Beyond Van Gogh’s Colour

The Exhibition Yellow. Beyond Van Gogh’s Colour explores, for the first time, what the colour yellow meant to Vincent van Gogh and the artists of his time. The exhibition reveals why this colour came to represent boldness and innovation in the nineteenth century, and what yellow signifies in art.

The exhibition opens with Van Gogh’s most famous yellow masterpiece, Sunflowers, and then leads you through the art, fashion, music, and literature around 1900. You will find answers to questions such as: What is yellow? How does yellow feel? How does yellow smell? Specially for this exhibition, students from the Conservatorium of Amsterdam have created new musical compositions inspired by the works on display. Lastly, visitors can experience the colour yellow in a unique way through a special light installation by the Danish artist Olafur Eliasson (1967). This installation is being shown in the Netherlands for the first time.

Cover image: Cuno Amiet, The Yellow Hill, 1903, 98 x 72 cm, Kunstmuseum Solothurn | photo: David Aebi