On The Table Read Magazine, “the best arts and entertainment magazine UK“, immerse yourself in the radiant power of yellow at the Van Gogh Museum’s exhibition Yellow. Beyond Van Gogh’s Colour, featuring Van Gogh’s iconic Sunflowers, works by his contemporaries, and immersive installations by Olafur Eliasson that explore this bold color through art, light, sound, and scent.
This spring, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam invites visitors to immerse themselves in the captivating world of yellow with its groundbreaking exhibition, Yellow. Beyond Van Gogh’s Colour. Running from 13 February to 17 May 2026, this is the first exhibition dedicated to exploring the profound significance of yellow in the works of Vincent van Gogh and his contemporaries, extending into its role in modern art, literature, fashion, and sensory experiences.
Van Gogh’s Passion for Yellow
Vincent van Gogh famously exclaimed, “How beautiful yellow is!” during his time in the South of France. The intense sunlight of Arles inspired him to embrace yellow as a symbol of warmth, exuberance, and radiance. Iconic works like his Sunflowers (1889) series capture the blazing brilliance of wheat fields, suns, and blooming flowers in vibrant yellow hues.
The exhibition opens with one of Van Gogh’s most beloved masterpieces, Sunflowers, launching a deeper investigation into yellow’s meanings in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Yellow in Art and Culture Around 1900
Yellow has long evoked sunlight and joy, but it also carries daring and ambiguous connotations—sometimes intrusive or even sickly. Artists like J.M.W. Turner used it so exuberantly to depict light that critics jokingly accused him of suffering from “yellow fever.” Paul Signac made yellow shimmer in Pointillist works.
By the turn of the century, yellow symbolized modernity and boldness, exemplified by the scandalous French novels with striking yellow covers that became icons of avant-garde literature. Artists often included these “yellow books” in paintings as emblems of contemporary life.
For abstract pioneers like Hilma af Klint and Wassily Kandinsky, yellow took on spiritual dimensions, linked to inner sound and music.
The exhibition also highlights yellow’s use in fashion and its attention-grabbing power, showcasing how this bold color required courage from artists who wielded it.
A Contemporary Sensory Experience: Olafur Eliasson
Bringing yellow into the present day, the exhibition features a site-specific light installation by renowned Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson (born 1967). Eliasson, known for immersive works that play with perception and light, has created multiple installations tailored for this show. As he describes his synesthetic experience: “I see red, I see blue, but I feel yellow.”
Visitors can step into these glowing environments, experiencing yellow in a direct, sensory way—marking the first time this installation is shown in the Netherlands.
Multisensory Collaborations
The Van Gogh Museum has partnered with innovative collaborators to bring yellow to life beyond visuals:
- Students from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam contribute musical interpretations.
- Fragrance experts from Robertet in Grasse create scents inspired by yellow.
- Designers from RAW Color explore form and light.
These elements allow yellow to engage sound, scent, and touch, posing questions like: What is yellow? How does yellow feel?
Yellow. Beyond Van Gogh’s Colour promises an original and multifaceted encounter with one of art’s most powerful colors.
Find The Van Gogh Museum now:
Van Gogh Museum
Museumplein 6, Amsterdam
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