Flowering peach tree

This Kröller-Müller version of the Flowering Peach Tree belongs to the sustained orchard series Van Gogh made in Arles in the spring of 1888 — among the first canvases he completed after arriving in the south of France in February, when the peach, almond, and apricot orchards came into bloom around the city. He described the blossoming orchards to Theo in letters of extraordinary excitement, writing that the delicate pinks and whites against the blue Provençal sky were unlike anything he had seen in northern Europe. He dedicated the series to the recently deceased Dutch painter Anton Mauve — his cousin by marriage and early painting mentor — and the dedication added a personal tenderness to a series that was already his most joyful work to date. The Kröller-Müller Museum's version is one of several that survive from this prolific orchard spring.

The peach tree's blossoming branches are rendered with delicate, quick strokes that capture both the lightness of the flowers and their arrangement against the sky. The palette is high-keyed and fresh — pinks, whites, and greens against a luminous blue — the most optimistic chromatic range Van Gogh achieved. Compositional structure is provided by the tree's branching forms.