Red Chestnuts in the Public Park at Arles

Van Gogh's Red Chestnuts in the Public Park at Arles, painted in 1889, belongs to his series of the public garden or poet's garden that he associated with the literary and artistic life of the south. The red-flowered chestnut trees — their blossoms a vivid contrast to the greens of the park — gave him chromatic material typical of his Arles period. He described walking in the park as one of the pleasures available to him despite his difficult circumstances, and these garden paintings carry a quality of hard-won peace. The work is currently in a private collection.

The chestnut blossoms provide vivid red accents against the surrounding greens of the park. Van Gogh's Arles palette handles the complementary contrast of red flowers and green foliage with the assurance of his mature period. Brushwork is energetic and varied, the flowering trees rendered with considerable expressive freedom.