Van Gogh Roulin family portraits explore timeless bonds at MFA Boston

New Van Gogh exhibition at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts reveals deep human connection through the Roulin family portraits.

A view of the exhibition “Van Gogh: The Roulin Family Portraits” at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)

By Anna Fadiah and Hayu Andini

The latest exhibition at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, titled Van Gogh: The Roulin Family Portraits, invites visitors into one of the most intimate chapters of Vincent van Gogh’s career. Devoted entirely to the Van Gogh Roulin family portraits, this compelling showcase goes beyond simple artistic admiration. It opens a window into human connection, emotional resilience, and the tender, complicated relationships that defined a crucial period of Van Gogh’s life.

Unlike typical blockbuster art events, this exhibition feels personal, almost vulnerable — like a pearl newly revealed from its shell. Featuring just over half of the 26 paintings Van Gogh created of the Roulin family, the exhibition focuses on five key figures: Joseph Roulin, a postman; his wife, Augustine; and their three children, Armand, Camille, and baby Marcelle.

A creative surge in Arles

The Van Gogh Roulin family portraits were produced in a remarkable burst of creativity spanning only eight months, from the summer of 1888 to early 1889. This was a pivotal period in art history, coinciding with Van Gogh’s hopes of establishing a thriving artistic community in Arles, a dream that famously crumbled following his turbulent encounter with Paul Gauguin.

Van Gogh’s friendship with Gauguin ended violently when, during a heated confrontation, Vincent suffered a breakdown that culminated in him severing part of his own ear. Despite this emotional catastrophe, Van Gogh’s work during this time remained astonishingly vibrant and filled with life. It is especially poignant that, amid such psychological chaos, Van Gogh found solace and inspiration in the stability of a single family — the Roulins.

The Roulins: More than subjects

Van Gogh’s interest in the Roulins transcended the conventional artist-model relationship. The Van Gogh Roulin family portraits reveal that the postman and his family were not merely subjects for the artist, but became symbols of loyalty, comfort, and genuine connection.

Joseph Roulin, often depicted in his crisp blue uniform, is rendered not just as a working man but as a fully realized individual, radiating wisdom, kindness, and a touch of philosophical depth. Vincent himself likened Joseph’s appearance to that of Socrates, noting his balding head, prominent ears, and thoughtful eyes.

Similarly, Augustine Roulin emerges in Van Gogh’s paintings as a figure of striking individuality. Far from presenting her as a generic symbol of motherhood, Van Gogh portrays her with an intense, almost intimidating presence, her narrowed eyes and tightly pulled-back hair suggesting a woman of strength and resilience.

Each Roulin family member is treated with profound respect. Baby Marcelle, young Camille, and the older Armand are all captured with tender immediacy. Rather than idealizing them, Van Gogh reveals their quirks, their moods, and their inherent humanity. This portrayal underscores one of the exhibition’s central themes: the irreplaceable uniqueness of every individual.

Portraits of feeling

While Van Gogh is often celebrated for his landscapes and still lifes, it was portraiture that he held closest to his heart. In his letters, Van Gogh expressed his aspiration to create modern portraits that conveyed the emotional and spiritual essence of his sitters.

For Van Gogh, "modern" portraiture meant using vivid, saturated colors, borrowing compositional ideas from Japanese prints, and emphasizing the emotional reality of his subjects over realistic precision. In the Van Gogh Roulin family portraits, this approach is fully realized. Each painting pulses with life, not through photographic likeness but through expressive brushstrokes and electric colors.

The portraits are raw and unvarnished, their imperfections only adding to their power. Looking closely at Joseph Roulin’s hands in the MFA’s 1888 portrait, one sees forms that are gnarled and rough, yet filled with vitality. These hands are landscapes in miniature, furrowed and alive, painted with the same love and attention that Van Gogh reserved for the fields and skies of Arles.

A fragile beauty

Today, the Van Gogh Roulin family portraits sit in heavy frames, insured for astronomical sums and regarded as untouchable masterpieces. Yet their beauty remains fragile and profoundly human. In every brushstroke, Van Gogh communicates the vulnerability of human bonds — their beauty, their ephemerality, and their preciousness.

The MFA’s curators, Katie Hanson and Nienke Bakker, have carefully spaced out the portraits across several galleries, allowing each painting to breathe. Although this arrangement makes direct comparisons a bit challenging, it encourages visitors to spend time with each work individually, appreciating the singular life captured within.

Supplementing the Roulin family portraits are other works by Van Gogh, Gauguin, Rembrandt, and Hals, along with Japanese prints and period photographs. These contextual pieces enhance the understanding of Van Gogh’s influences and his unique vision.

Letters of compassion

An especially moving aspect of the exhibition is a small collection of letters written by Joseph Roulin, displayed near the end of the show. These are not Van Gogh’s famous letters but missives penned by the postman himself, addressed either to Vincent’s family or to Van Gogh during his time at the Saint-Rémy psychiatric hospital.

Roulin’s letters reveal a man of deep compassion and fierce loyalty. Unlike Gauguin, who fled after Vincent’s breakdown, Roulin remained a steadfast friend. His words radiate empathy, concern, and affection, providing a counterpoint to the vibrant but often anguished paintings.

Reading these letters imparts a heavy emotional weight, reminding visitors that Van Gogh’s story was not just one of suffering but also of connection, of friendships that endured through adversity.

The enduring relevance of the Roulin portraits

Ultimately, the Van Gogh Roulin family portraits at the MFA Boston do more than showcase the technical brilliance of one of history’s greatest artists. They stand as enduring testimonies to the importance of human connection — to friendship, family, and love.

In a world that often feels fragmented and transactional, Van Gogh’s tender depictions of the Roulins offer a radical reminder: that every individual matters, not for what they can offer, but simply for who they are. Each painting invites us to pause, to see, and to feel — and in doing so, to rediscover our own capacity for empathy and affection.

The Van Gogh Roulin family portraits may have been created in a moment of personal turmoil for the artist, but they continue to speak across the decades, offering a vision of humanity that is fragile, precious, and absolutely essential.

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