Gordina de Groot, Head

Van Gogh's 1885 study of Gordina de Groot's head belongs to the intensive Nuenen portrait series that formed his practical preparation for The Potato Eaters. Gordina de Groot was one of the de Groot family who modeled for The Potato Eaters itself, and her individual portrait study is among the most important of the Nuenen series in terms of its connection to Van Gogh's most ambitious Dutch composition. The work is currently in a private collection or unlocated.

Gordina's face is rendered with Van Gogh's characteristic Nuenen approach — dark earthy palette, direct observational focus, no idealization. The peasant woman's features are given full attention, the specific character of her face observed and rendered with the respect that Van Gogh consistently brought to his peasant subjects. Heavy impasto is consistent with his Nuenen practice.