Marguerite Gachet at the Piano 1890

Vincent van Gogh painted Marguerite Gachet at the Piano, using oil on canvas, during his brief stay in Auvers-sur-Oise in 1890. Dr. Gachet, Van Gogh’s physician, cared for the artist during the final months of his life. Marguerite is portrayed in a domestic space, an interior that subtly conveys her social status. The piano symbolizes her family's aspirations to high culture, while the dress emphasizes the restrictive social expectations placed on women of the era. In terms of the relationship between the artist and his subject, there are questions of how class and gender complicated that dynamic. Van Gogh's mental state and his dependence on Dr. Gachet arguably shaped his perception of Marguerite. Was he fully able to see her beyond the confines of his own experience? This portrait invites us to reflect on the personal lives of women in the 19th century, as well as how those lives were often represented by male artists.