Van Gogh associated the colour yellow with hope and friendship. He suggested that his four Sunflowers canvases, painted to decorate his house in Arles, express an ‘idea symbolising gratitude’. He seems to have been especially pleased with this picture, which he hung in the guest bedroom in anticipation of the arrival of his friend, the artist Paul Gauguin.

Bosschaert’s lush bouquets are often flanked by seashells from foreign locales or other costly treasures. The artist drew inspiration from botanical gardens and from exotic wares imported by the Dutch East India Company. This large still life is painted on smooth copper, enhancing the extraordinary detail of his brushwork.

Cypress trees reminded Van Gogh of ‘Egyptian obelisks’. These dark trees were in a wheatfield close to Arles, where the artist resided. They stand straight and tall in the middle of the wheat, and make a strong and deliberate contrast with the receding horizontal bands of the yellow field, blue hills and sky.