Until January 11, 2026, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is hosting the exhibition Van Gogh and the Roulins. Together Again at Last, dedicated to the friendship between Vincent van Gogh and letter carrier Joseph Roulin. For the first time, fourteen portraits of the Roulin family-usually scattered among museums and private collections around the world-are brought together in a single exhibition.
When Van Gogh arrived in Arles in 1888, he found it difficult to integrate into local life, but he formed a deep bond with Joseph Roulin, recognizing in him a kindred spirit. The letter carrier, with his blue uniform and showy beard, became one of his favorite subjects, along with his wife Augustine and their three children, Armand, Camille and Marcelle. The portraits Van Gogh dedicated to this family do not merely depict faces, but aim to restore the soul and vitality of the subjects, in an expressive quest that recalls the psychological intensity of masters such as Rembrandt and Frans Hals. The exhibition also includes works by these 17th-century artists, as well as portraits that Paul Gauguin painted of the Roulin family during his stay with Van Gogh in the famous Yellow House.
An entire section is devoted to Joseph Roulin’s letters to the Van Gogh family, exhibited to the public for the first time. These are letters that tell of the solidarity and affection of the letter carrier, who followed his friend Vincent’s state of health with care during the mental crisis of 1888, visiting him every day in the hospital and informing his brother Theo with words of comfort and friendship.
Among the most significant pieces in the exhibition is the original chair from Van Gogh’s studio, the one on which Roulin was portrayed. The artist bought it for the Yellow House and left it in the custody of the Ginoux family at the Café de la Gare before leaving Arles in 1889. The chair became part of the Van Gogh Museum’s collection through Theo’s son Vincent and still represents a tangible link to the artist’s universe.
The exhibition also offers an experience for all ages. Upstairs, a life-size reconstruction of the Yellow House (eight meters high) allows visitors to explore the neighborhood of Arles as it appeared in Van Gogh’s time, surrounded by historical photographs and his famous views. Here young and old can make their own portraits, solve puzzles inspired by the Roulin family, write messages of encouragement to someone they care about, or invent their own story in the Yellow Playhouse. Coloring pages and a reading corner with the Little Golden Book Vincent and Camille picture book are also available for children.
Organized in collaboration with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the exhibition is curated by Nienke Bakker (Van Gogh Museum) and Katie Hanson (MFA). The two institutions possess some of the most representative paintings in the Roulin series: the Amsterdam museum holds portraits of Camille Roulin (1888) and Marcelle Roulin (1888), while the Boston MFA holds The Postman Joseph Roulin (1888) and Augustine Roulin (La Berceuse) (1889). Alongside these masterpieces are loans from international museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, the Museum Folkwang in Essen, the Kunst Museum in Winterthur, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
The exhibition is accompanied by an illustrated catalog with essays by the curators and contributions by scholars such as Chris Atkins, Rachel Childers, Muriel Geldof, Bregje Gerritse, Erin Mysak, Richard Newman, Kathrin Pilz and Lydia Vagts-a valuable insight into one of the most human and poetic chapters in Van Gogh’s life.
Vincent’s chair on which Joseph Roulin was portrayed in 1888 (Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam)
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| At the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, an exhibition celebrates the friendship between the artist and letter carrier Joseph Roulin |
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