Prisoners Exercising
1890 Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts
About this artwork
This painting by Vincent van Gogh depicts a group of prisoners walking in a circle in a high-walled exercise yard. It is a work created during the artist's stay at the asylum in Saint-Rémy and is famously based on an engraving by Gustave Doré titled 'Newgate Exercise Yard'.
Did you know?
This poignant work was painted by Van Gogh while he was a patient at the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, offering a glimpse into his inner world. Interestingly, it is an interpretation of an engraving by Gustave Doré, transforming a somber scene of prison life into a powerful reflection on isolation and the human condition. The repetition of the figures in a desolate yard can be seen as a metaphor for Van Gogh's own struggles with mental health and confinement, suggesting a shared experience of despair.
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Prisoners Exercising
Vincent van Gogh, 1890
