Located about thirty kilometres from Paris, discover the village of Auvers-sur-Oise, which was the final refuge of Vincent Van Gogh, a misunderstood genius who revolutionized the history of painting. Accompanied by Vincent Van Gogh himself, you will relive with emotions the painter's last days there. Van Gogh settled in on May 20, 1890, at the Ravoux inn, and for 70 days, alternating between hope and anguish, he “threw himself into work” to forget his dark melancholy and not succumb to “his ailment.” It was during this time that 74 paintings and drawings were born from this fervor for life. Among them, many masterpieces.
Vincent will lead you into his unique pictorial imagination through the analysis of one of his masterpieces: the Church of Auvers-sur-Oise (now the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption). It is through this artistic gateway that you will delve into the mystery of Van Gogh. This mystery will gradually unfold as you stroll through Auvers-sur-Oise, where you will rediscover the streets, landscapes, and iconic locations that inspired Van Gogh's final works.
Vincent will invite you to pause in the park that bears his name today, where several sculptures in his likeness stand, posthumous tributes from the sculptor Zadkine. Vincent will revisit the highlights of his life through the description of nine crucial dates that shaped his destiny and inspired his works. The Auberge Ravoux will be the next stop on your stroll. This artists' café will prove to be an emotionally charged place. It is here that Van Gogh stayed in Auvers-sur-Oise; it is also here that he died, in a modest room.
Van Gogh will then present to you the last portrait he painted: that of Adeline Ravoux, daughter of the innkeeper.What ailment afflicted Van Gogh? You will attempt to answer this question in front of Dr. Gachet's house, a specialist in “melancholy.” You will be transported with horror at the mention of the various “treatments” inflicted on psychiatric patients in the 19th century, of which Van Gogh embodies the failure.Finally, your journey to Auvers-sur-Oise will conclude with emotion around Van Gogh's death.
Who killed Vincent Van Gogh? Himself, society, something else? You will find elements of an answer by discovering his last painting: Wheat Field with Crows. It is facing the wheat field that inspired the painting that you will hear the last letter he wrote to his dear brother Theo. Your journey ends at the cemetery of Auvers-sur-Oise, a place of contemplation, where the two brothers rest in peace, forever united under a bed of ivy.
