Wednesday October 3, 1888, 09:17 – Arles, France. Van Gogh was in quite a state when he reached out so I had to make this one work on the spot. He had awakened from a nightmare that he could not shake, so I did my best to calm him down. After a little while, and a bite to eat (oh those baguettes !) he finally sat down and was able to share his thoughts. We began to paint which seemed to further sooth him. He said he dreamt he was in his room, yet he was also outside, as if the room walls were transparent. But what really shook him was that the ground was on fire as were the trees. He could feel the heat. We painted what he saw.
After some gentle persuasion, I managed to convince him that it was fall and what he saw was the trees turning color, that’s all. Couldn’t really explain the room, but that was OK. I chalked it up to his intense energy which likely produced very strong colors in his nightmare. He was determined to repaint the scene but as separate pieces perhaps with colors toned down a bit.
Finally I said go see Paul G… figuring he could help him relax a bit. I was about to say Dr. Gachet but stopped myself because I realized he had not met him yet. He was now so excited to get started that he did not hear me. Frazzled, I quickly slipped away completely forgetting to tell him the amazing news…
