Following the tragic episode of the self-mutilation that ended his stay at Arles, van Gogh spent a year (May 1889-May 1890) at the hospital of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole near the town of Saint-Rémy de Provence in an attempt to regain his health and equilibrium. The sheet belongs to a group of drawings made in Saint-Rémy, all executed with restless, markedly curvilinear outlines, and strong parallel hatching, symptomatic of the emotional tension of the artist at this time. When his physical and emotional condition permitted, he found subjects to paint and draw in the town and the surrounding countryside, such as the wheat field depicted here, which is related to a painting by the artist dated 1889 in the National Gallery, Prague.
Inscribed on the verso, at upper right corner, in brown ink, "202".
Watermark: Countermark: Letters "Latune et Cie Blacons" on wove paper
Gogh-Bonger, J. van, Mme., former owner.
Serigiers, G., former owner.
Wacker, Bernard, former owner.
Barney, James W., former owner.
Lambert, Gerard B., Mrs., former owner.
Major Acquisitions of the Pierpont Morgan Library, 1924-1974: Drawings, New York, 1974, no. 35, repr.
Ryskamp, Charles, ed. Seventeenth Report to the Fellows of the Pierpont Morgan Library, 1972-1974. New York : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1976, p. 167.
Dervaux, Isabelle. Drawing connections: Baselitz, Kelly, Penone, Rockburne, and the old masters. New York: Morgan Library & Museum, 2007, p. 23, 26 (repr.)