Ultra-Violet: New Light on Van Gogh’s Irises

Exhibition in the PST ART: Art & Science Collide series

Inverted image of Vincent van Gogh's painting "Irises" in which the colors are all in bright neons of blue, green and magenta.

XRF of Irises (detail), 1889, Vincent van Gogh. Oil on canvas. Getty Museum

Examine Getty’s much-loved painting, Irises by Vincent van Gogh, from the perspective of modern conservation science. This exhibition shows how the artist’s understanding of light and color informed his painting practice, and how conservators and scientists working together can harness the power of light with analytical tools that uncover the artist’s materials and working methods. Lastly, this exhibition reveals how light has irrevocably changed some of the colors in Irises. A painting we thought we knew so well has suddenly become quite unfamiliar.

This exhibition is presented in English and Spanish. Esta exhibición se presenta en inglés y en español.

Oct 1, 2024–Mar 9, 2025

Getty Center

Museum West Pavilion, Plaza Level

This is a past exhibition.

About PST ART

Southern California’s landmark arts event, PST ART, returns in September 2024, presenting over 70 exhibitions from organizations across the region exploring the intersections of art and science, both past and present. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information about PST ART: Art & Science Collide, please visit pst.art.

Selected Works

Scientist Catherine Patterson examines Irises using a microscope
A stereo microscope view of the painting's brushwork showing the white preparation layer underneath the thick application of paint
Former Getty intern Michelle Tenggara and Paintings Conservator Devi Ormond examine the surface of the painting under magnification
Irises is scanned with X-ray fluorescence (XRF), a chemical imaging technique that provides information about the pigments Van Gogh used
The hospital of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, near Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France, Spring, 2023
A view of the fields surrounding the hospital in Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, Spring, 2023
Violet irises in full bloom in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Spring, 2023
Results from XRF scanning (right) helped identify pigments and where they are located on the painting