Van Gogh's two pictures of the hospital in Arles-painted while he was recovering after cutting his ear-head to the Courtauld

"The pair of Van Goghs, The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles and The Ward in the Hospital at Arles, will be among the show's highlights. Both were begun in the second half of April 1889, at a time when the artist was sleeping in the hospital, but allowed to paint during the day. This was four months after Van Gogh had mutilated his ear,"

"Hospital garden (April-May 1889) depicts part of the arcaded cloister-like courtyard with its colourful enclosed garden. The male patients were housed on the upper level, on the right in the painting, and Van Gogh must have loved to escape from the noisy and crowded ward to enjoy the springtime. It would have been the best time of the year for flowers."

Two paintings by Van Gogh from his time in the Arles hospital — The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles and The Ward in the Hospital at Arles — are on loan to the Courtauld Gallery for the exhibition running 14 February to 26 May. Both works were begun in the second half of April 1889 while Van Gogh was sleeping in the hospital but permitted to paint during the day. The works were purchased in the 1920s by Swiss collector Oskar Reinhart and later became part of his museum in Winterthur. The Reinhart museum was previously prohibited from lending; that restriction has been modified. The Winterthur museum is temporarily closed for building work and is due to reopen in January 2026.

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