The Van Gogh Series :: Bearded Iris

Iris is a very popular flower at my house, particularly any that are in the purple hue. They are my husband's favorites and he's got them planted all over the yard. Our favorite is the bearded variety as they are just so lush in the way their petals cascade. 

It is no wonder that it was a favorite subject for Van Gogh to paint. His Iris paintings are some of his best known and most recognized pieces. But what I find interesting is when in his life he started to paint these gorgeous flowers. In 1889 he committed himself to the asylum at Saint Paul-de-Mausole in Saint Remy, France after many hospitalizations and self-mutilation. 

It was during his stay here that he painted some 130 paintings with the surrounding gardens at the clinic. He started work on his Irises within the first week of his stay at the asylum. He also painted Starry Night during his stay here, but I'll save that one for another post in this series.

His Irises painting is on the list for one of the most expensive paintings ever sold, selling for 54 million dollars in 1987. Currently Irises is on display at The Getty Center in Los Angeles, CA.

To understand a little bit more about what was going on with Vincent during this period, you can read some of his letters. He mentions that he's had epileptic seizures and that it was one of these episodes where he's injured his ear. There seems to be many stories about how he ended up with a bandaged ear! He had several primary subjects during his stay, but the flowers in the landscape seem to capture him. He writes "the landscape of St-Remy is very beautiful." and that he has "two subjects taken from the garden - violet irises and a lilac bush."   

I took inspiration for these earrings from the gradation of purple hue in an iris, and the cascading petals from the bearded variety. They are a diamond cut amethyst that stacks in a cascade as you layer them together. I like the effect of these, but also wanted them to have that long hang to them like the long stocks of the flower. This pair you'll find posted in my Etsy shop! Also for a little fun, my friend Gloria over at New End Studios has allowed me to guest post on her blog, and I've got a Sunflower inspired Van Gogh pair there and also listed in my Etsy shop. I'm working my way through that bowl of single earrings!