Archive · 6 Oct 2026
Van Gogh’s Sunflowers Reunite in Rare Philadelphia Pairing
Two paintings of sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh are on display together in Philadelphia.
One has a yellow background and came from London; the other has a turquoise background and belongs to the Philadelphia museum.
The London painting has never before crossed the Atlantic.
The paintings were made several months apart in 1888 and 1889.
Van Gogh first painted sunflowers to decorate the house where he worked in Arles, France.
Later, he made copies and thought about placing two sunflower pictures beside a portrait in a larger artwork.
The London painting was lent to Philadelphia after the Philadelphia museum sent its own Sunflowers to London in 2024.
Visitors are coming to see the rare pairing.
Two Van Gogh sunflower paintings are displayed side by side at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Philadelphia’s turquoise-background painting was completed in January 1889, while London’s yellow-background canvas dates to August 1888.
The London painting has crossed the Atlantic for the first time, following Philadelphia’s 2024 loan of its painting to London.
Five large sunflower canvases survive in public collections in London, Philadelphia, Amsterdam, Munich and Tokyo.
Van Gogh first intended the sunflower paintings to decorate his Arles studio and later considered using two in a triptych.
- Who
- Vincent van Gogh; the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the National Gallery in London lent the paintings.
- What
- Two of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers paintings are being shown side by side in a rare pairing.
- When
- The canvases were completed in August 1888 and January 1889; the article does not give the exhibition dates.
- Where
- Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, United States.
- Why
- The National Gallery lent its painting after Philadelphia lent its own Sunflowers to a 2024 London exhibition.
- Exhibition
- Van Gogh’s Sunflowers: A Symphony in Blue and Yellow
- Venue
- Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Philadelphia canvas
- Completed in January 1889; turquoise-blue background
- London canvas
- Painted in August 1888; yellow background; loaned by the National Gallery
- First Atlantic crossing
- The London painting has crossed the Atlantic for the first time
- Surviving large canvases
- Five are in public collections in London, Philadelphia, Amsterdam, Munich and Tokyo
- Loan exchange
- Philadelphia sent its painting to the National Gallery’s 2024 exhibition Van Gogh: Poets & Lovers