Arles: Then and now – Van Gogh’s Yellow House

In May 1888 Vincent Van Gogh rented four rooms at 2 Place Lamartine, in a town called Arles in the south of France. This would come to be known as the Yellow House. The rooms were on the right wing of the nearest building in the painting. The two ground …

Arles: Van Gogh’s CafeTerrace at Night – then and now

Ever wanted to put yourself in the picture? It was evening and the sky was precisely the deep Prussian Blue that Van Gogh portrayed in his painting of “the Café Terrace at Night”. The lights under the awning reflected warmly in the wine glasses as we toasted our meal and our …

Roman baths (Thermae) in Arles

The extensive remains of the  Roman Baths (thermae) in Arles in the south of France – built during the 4th Century AD under Emperor Constantine – give an insight into how the Romanised Gauls lived – taking on many aspects of Roman culture. Regular bathing was was practiced across all classes. …

Van Gogh’s bridge to Japan

Why are bridges so fascinating? Bridges hold a special place in every culture. They are a means to cross  from one place to another; over a hazard, a dangerous river or chasm. So bridges are both a connection and a marker for a division. When you step off the land …

Then and Now: Van Gogh’s “Starry Night over the Rhone”

The journey from Paris to Arles took four hours by TGV (fast train) – just 8 months and 135 years after Vincent Van Gogh. His journey was a lot slower, but soon we were following in his footsteps – literally. A map from the local tourist office showed the locations …