Vincent van Gogh Sold Only One Painting in His Lifetime

While Vincent van Gogh’s vibrant, emotional style is celebrated today, it was considered jarring and unrefined by most 19th-century viewers. This public indifference is what makes the single confirmed sale of his career so significant. The painting, 'The Red Vineyard,' was purchased by fellow artist Anna Boch for 400 francs at the 1890 Les XX exhibition in Brussels. The fact that the buyer was an artist herself suggests his genius was recognized by his avant-garde peers, even if it was lost on the wider market and traditional critics of the era.

The popular image of a completely destitute artist isn't entirely accurate, however. Van Gogh was able to produce his enormous body of work largely due to the unwavering financial and emotional support of his younger brother, Theo, a successful art dealer. Theo believed deeply in Vincent's talent and tirelessly tried to promote his work, but found few takers for the radically expressive canvases. It was ultimately after both brothers’ deaths that Theo's widow, Johanna van Gogh-Bonger, meticulously organized exhibitions and published Vincent's letters, single-handedly building the foundation for the artist's monumental posthumous fame and the astronomical prices his works command today.