I visited Amsterdam with my wife during the Christmas holidays. We try to visit museums whenever we travel to a new city. It is like time travel, really—stepping away from our digital-saturated world into spaces where art breathes, and stories live in physical form.
I wanted to write about our visit to the Van Gogh Museum because of a moment I witnessed in the gallery. Among the letters and sketches, I overheard a conversation between a mother and her young daughter.
“Mommy, do you know why Van Gogh cut his ear off?” the little girl asked. Her mother replied, “Wasn’t he depressed or something?”
The daughter’s response made me rethink everything about our visit: “No! He did it because he had a fight with his friend.” In that simple statement, she captured the human truth behind the lore—a moment of profound emotional pain triggered by a fractured friendship with Paul Gauguin.
This is what makes the Van Gogh Museum extraordinary. It presents Vincent’s story without sensationalism, showing how his brilliant work existed not because of, but alongside his personal battles. Through careful curation, they’ve created a space where art, letters, and personal history combine to tell a story that resonates across ages and backgrounds.
It wasn’t showing us the Van Gogh we thought we knew—the artist who cut off his ear, sold only one painting in his lifetime, and created The Starry Night (which isn’t even housed here in Amsterdam). Instead, it was showing us Vincent through his relationships.
At the Van Gogh Museum | Robins Mathew
The museum does this primarily through his letters. My wife and I found ourselves lingering at the glass cases displaying his correspondence. Vincent wrote often, especially to his brother Theo, and his words revealed someone different from the troubled genius of popular imagination.
We stopped at the museum café after viewing The Potato Eaters, where Van Gogh painted a farming family at their evening meal. It wasn’t a pretty painting, but it showed real life. Being from Kerala, where farming was part of our history, we noticed how he chose to paint workers and farmers when other artists were focused on the wealthy and powerful.
The letters also showed us Vincent’s relationship with his brother Theo through an unexpected source. Through an old-school telephone receiver, we listened to Jo Bonger’s story. She was Theo’s wife and knew that marrying Theo meant accepting both brothers’ deep bond. What fascinated us was Jo’s own story. After both brothers died—Vincent in 1890 and Theo just six months later—she became the guardian of Vincent’s legacy, spending years publishing their letters and sharing his work with the world.
Even Vincent’s role as mentor emerged through these letters. His letters to young artist Émile Bernard, displayed next to Bernard’s striking work, made us think about our own creative journeys. Reading how openly he shared their artistic experiments, we talked about how rare it is to find mentors who let you try new things without fear of judgment.
Throughout the museum, we saw how carefully they’d woven together these threads of Vincent’s life—his art, his letters, his relationships. They showed us not just his personal struggles but how his work grew alongside his connections with others.
As we left the museum that winter afternoon, we felt like we’d met Vincent—not just the artist, but the brother, friend, and mentor. Standing before his letters, sketches, and paintings reminded us why we still visit museums. Sometimes, you need to see things in person to understand them differently.
If you go: The museum experience
The Van Gogh Museum itself is a masterpiece of architectural design. The main building, designed by Gerrit Rietveld, opened in 1973 and features geometric shapes and open spaces. In 2015, a striking glass entrance hall designed by Hans van Heeswijk Architects was added, connecting the Rietveld Building and the Kurokawa Wing. This glass structure floods the space with natural light, a fitting tribute to an artist obsessed with capturing light in his work. The museum flows chronologically through Vincent’s life, starting from the ground floor and moving upward through his artistic journey.
Don’t miss the multimedia guide—it’s not your typical museum audio tour. This interactive guide offers intimate insights into Van Gogh’s life and work through engaging narratives that feel more like a carefully crafted documentary than a standard audio guide. At just 3.75 euros for adults, it’s a worthwhile addition to your visit.
Here are some practical tips for visitors:
• Buy tickets online in advance (24 euros for adults, free with the I Amsterdam City Card).
• Most peaceful times to visit: early morning or late afternoon on weekdays.
• Plan for 2–3 hours to fully appreciate the collection.
• The permanent collection is arranged chronologically across four floors.
• Look out for Van Gogh’s letters, which are central to understanding his story.
• The museum shop offers exceptional art books and thoughtfully curated merchandise.
The writer is a multidisciplinary designer and photographer.
