Mademoiselle Gachet at the Piano 1890

Vincent van Gogh made this sketch of Mademoiselle Gachet, the daughter of his physician, at the piano, likely in 1890, the year of his death. At the time, the piano was more than just an instrument; it was a potent symbol of middle-class status and feminine accomplishment in late 19th-century France. Young women of a certain social standing were encouraged, if not expected, to demonstrate their refinement through musical skill, thus making them more marriageable. In this drawing, we see the stark contrast between the bourgeois expectation of the young woman and Van Gogh's expressionist style, which seems to be at odds with the composure expected of women in this social class. To understand this piece fully, one might research the musical culture of the time, consult family records of the Gachet family, and delve into Van Gogh's letters and biographies. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.