.webp&w=3840&q=75)
The Méridienne (The Nap)
- Original dimensions
- 91 x 73 cm
- Museum
- musée d'Orsay
- Year
- 1890
Scene depicted
The painting “La Méridienne” features a woman lying on a straw bed, her face half-hidden by sheets, as daylight filters through the window. Vincent manages to capture the serenity of this moment of rest, after effort. The painting depicts not only the tired body of labor but also the soul that longs for tranquility. Each brushstroke, often laden with experimentation, whispers a silent poetry about the passage of time.
Place in the artist's career
“La Méridienne” is situated in a pivotal period of Van Gogh's creation, a creator who combines exuberance and introspection. Alongside “ Les Tournesols ” and “ La Nuit étoilée ”, this painting reveals his evolution towards a vibrant luminance, and the psychological depth of the canvas contrasts with the more classical forms of his beginnings. It is a peak where emotion and technique intertwine, the signature of his genius.
Anecdote
“I paint what I feel…” once said Van Gogh in a moment of sincerity. It was one spring morning when he crossed the tired gaze of a peasant after a long day of labor, the golden light reflecting on the flowering fields, that awakened in him the inspiration for this masterpiece . Thus, La Méridienne becomes a tribute to the tranquil beauty of rural life.