Olive Trees with Yellow Sky and Sun

Catalogue numbers: F 710, JH 1856.

Van Gogh entered the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum at Saint-Rémy in May 1889 as a third-class voluntary patient. In the first weeks of his treatment he did not leave the area of the asylum and he only started to paint outside the walls in June 1889. During the rest of the summer the worsening of his condition did not make it possible for him to work outside, thus in July and August he painted mostly portraits and he copied pictures of his favourite artists, Millet and Delacroix. When after the two months of forced rest he again painted outside the walls of the asylum, he was astonished by the view of the olive groves. He produced a series of olive groves.