Grass and Butterflies

Van Gogh's Grass and Butterflies, painted at Saint-Rémy in 1889 and now in the Van Gogh Museum, is a close study of low vegetation and the insects that inhabit it — a miniature ecosystem observed with intense attention. The asylum garden provided him with this specific patch of grass and its inhabitants, a subject entirely different in scale from his panoramic wheat fields and orchid studies. The butterflies fluttering among the grass stems are observed with naturalist precision that recalls his Nuenen birds' nests, this time in the Mediterranean setting. The Van Gogh Museum's possession of this work makes it easily available to scholarship.

The composition focuses closely on the grass and butterflies, filling the canvas with the intricate pattern of stems, blades, and delicate insect forms. Van Gogh renders the grass in a rich variety of greens with carefully observed specific plants. The butterflies are painted with precision against the complex background. His Saint-Rémy technique animates every part of the surface.