Double-square painting

In a double-square painting, one dimension of the canvas is twice the size of the other, so that the canvas is the shape of two adjoining squares. The overall effect of this is stability, and the compositional challenge is to avoid monotony.{{Elucidate|date=February 2017}}

Prior to Van Gogh, artists such as Charles-François Daubigny and Puvis de Chavannes had used canvases of similar proportions, and Van Gogh was aware of this.

File:Vincent van Gogh - Mademoiselle Gachet au piano.jpg]]

Vincent van Gogh used double-squares almost exclusively during the final weeks of his life in Auvers, in June and July 1890. To arrive at this size, Van Gogh combined the legs of two standard sizes: the 50 cm leg from a size 12 and the 100 cm leg of a size 40 stretcher. The result was a double-square of {{cvt|50|x|100|cm}}, and from this size, easily the square could be derived by using two 50 cm legs. His choice of this size points into another direction from previous artists; his double-squares can easily be combined with size 30 canvases to more elaborated décorations,{{Elucidate|date=February 2017}} and his squares extend these possibilities.

File:Vincent van Gogh - Tree Roots and Trunks (F816).jpg|Tree Roots, July, 1890, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (F816, JH2113)

File:Vincent Willem van Gogh 038.jpg|Wheat Fields near Auvers, June–July 1890, Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna

File:Wheatfield - Van Gogh.jpg|Sheaves of Wheat, 1890, Dallas Museum of Art (F771)

File:Van Gogh - Feld mit Korngarben.jpeg|Field with Stacks of Grain, July 1890, Beyeler Foundation, Riehen, Switzerland (F809)

File:Vincent van Gogh - Undergrowth with Two Figures (F773).jpg|Undergrowth with Two Figures, June 1890, Cincinnati Museum of Art

File:VanGoghThatchedCottagesByAHill.jpg|Thatched Cottages by a Hill, July 1890, Tate Gallery, London (F 793, JH 2114)

File:Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) - Wheat Field with Crows (1890).jpg|Wheat Field with Crows, 1890, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

File:Vincent van Gogh - Wheatfield Under Thunderclouds - VGM F778.jpg|Wheatfield Under Thunderclouds, July 1890, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

File:Van Gogh - Landschaft mit Schloss Auvers bei Sonnenuntergang.jpeg|Landscape with Castle Auvers at Sunset, June 1890, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (F770)

File:Vincent van Gogh - Landscape at Auvers in the Rain.jpg|Landscape at Auvers in the Rain, July 1890, National Museum Cardiff, Wales

File:Vincent Willem van Gogh 021.jpg|Daubigny's Garden, 1890, Hiroshima Museum of Art, Hiroshima

Ivon Hitchens worked primarily in double-squares at certain periods in his career.

• List of works by Vincent van Gogh

• Pickvance, Ronald:
• Zemel, Carol:

{{Vincent van Gogh}}

Category:Paintings by Vincent van Gogh

Category:Series of paintings by Vincent van Gogh

Category:1890 paintings