Five limited-edition writing instruments depict his various artistic periods.
Montblanc introduces the new Masters of Art Collection, which honors the immortal contribution of great artists in their quest for perfection in art, a quest Montblanc both celebrates and participates in as a brand rooted in culture, creativity and self-expression.
Montblanc is dedicating this series of limited editions to a variety of visual artists, whose work encompasses a broad range of disciplines, from painting and sculpture to design and architecture, covering different epochs like the Renaissance, the Baroque era, or Impressionism period and beyond.
Van Gogh is introduced into the collection through five limited-edition writing instruments that take design inspiration from some of his most well-known works and idiosyncratic art style.
Montblanc collaborated with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam to ensure that the Masters of Art Homage to Vincent van Gogh Limited Editions align with the museum’s insight into his work and life. The museum houses the world’s largest collection of Van Gogh’s art with over 200 paintings, close to 500 drawings and more than 700 letters.
Born in the Netherlands in 1853, Van Gogh’s path to self-discovery began in 1869 with his first job, as an apprentice to an art dealer, but it wasn’t until 1880 that he decided to become an artist. Working at the vanguard of post-Impressionist art, Van Gogh breathed life into his art with his bold use of color, dramatic brushstrokes and the impasto technique, whereby he applied paint thickly to his canvas to create depth, emotion and movement. In just one decade, he created over 800 paintings and more than 1,100 drawings and sketches.
Limited edition 4810
This limited-edition writing instrument, coming in a fountain pen and a rollerball version, celebrates Vincent van Gogh’s time in Arles with design details evoking the Provençal wheatfields and one of his most famous paintings, “Sunflowers.”
In 1888, Vincent van Gogh left Paris and found new inspiration, new light conditions and tranquility in Arles in southern France, where he fell in love with the sun-drenched landscapes and settled down to capture the sun-infused mood and the beautiful colors of nature. The writing instrument’s barrel, decorated in shades of yellow and orange, is reminiscent of the sun-drenched landscapes of southern France as captured in Van Gogh’s works. This period of brightness is also reflected in the orange lacquer used to fill the signature ‘Vincent’, engraved on the platinum-coated barrel ring of the edition. Next to it, an engraving of ‘1888’ commemorates the year he moved to Arles.
Van Gogh’s famous series of five sunflower paintings was also created in this time period, lending its likeness to the interpretation embossed on the handcrafted, solid Au 750 gold rhodium-coated nib. Van Gogh’s palette knife inspired the platinum-coated clip, while his sweeping brushwork is immortalized in the yellow lacquer of the cap top.
Like many fellow artists in Paris, Vincent van Gogh was fascinated with Japanese art known at the time as Japonisme, and he marvelled at the freshness of traditional Japanese woodblock prints, which he started collecting, even adopting some elements of their composition into his own paintings. The cap of this edition is made from hornbeam wood in token of Van Gogh’s admiration for this art form. The wood-cutting knife or hangi-toh used in Japan for making woodblock prints inspired the overall silhouette of the writing instrument.
Limited edition 888
The design of this edition evokes the artist’s time in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and Auvers-sur-Oise with details reflecting the Provençal skies and one of his most famous paintings, “Wheatfield with Crows.” During this time, Vincent Van Gogh created memorable impressions of the gardens and wheatfields near the sanctuary where he lived. Paintings from this period marked his maturity as an artist and inspired the color composition of the cap of the Limited Edition 888.
Limited edition 161
This edition with a limitation of 161 captures the artist’s final years in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and Auvers-sur-Oise with design details reflecting his last work, Tree Roots, among others. After Van Gogh left Arles, he made his home in Saint-Rémy where he reached his artistic maturity. It was in 1890 that the painter moved on to Auvers-sur-Oise, which became his final home. The solid Au 750 signature gold barrel ring is engraved with Van Gogh’s signature and ‘1890’, commemorating the year he drew his last painting, Tree Roots. The Ag 925 sterling silver barrel is decorated with lacquer inlays with design and colors from Tree Roots, which depicts a group of trees with their roots exposed by erosion on the side of a hill.
Limited edition 90
The design of this edition limited to 90 pieces celebrates Van Gogh’s time Arles, reflecting his Provençal landscapes seen in his work. Here he was able to breathe a magical quality into his paintings using buoyant colors and an emotional, impasto style –applying thick paint in rough strokes to create a topography of colored layers. Van Gogh’s impasto was intense, the color potent and the strokes of the palette knife vigorous. On the Limited Edition 90, this technique is interpreted by hand in the artwork adorning the cap and barrel. Inspired by masterpieces such as The Harvest, the hand-crafted artwork is composed of colors used by Van Gogh for his visions of Provence: warm yellows, resonant oranges and soothing greens. Each writing instrument is unique in the way strokes of color fuse together, giving this edition the quality of a painted canvas.
The engraving of “Arles” on the cap top emphasizes the importance of this place to Van Gogh. The year Vincent van Gogh moved to Arles is commemorated in an engraving of ‘1888’ alongside the signature ‘Vincent’ on the barrel ring.
Limited edition 8
This edition with a limitation of just 8 pieces is a testament to the breath-taking blue skies and brush style that have made Van Gogh’s work “Wheatfield with Crows” a true masterpiece.
Painted in Auvers-sur-Oise after his sojourn in the south, the artwork depicts a deep blue sky contrasting with the bright yellow of a wheatfield dotted with black birds. The jewel-like quality of this sky is captured in the blue lacquer artwork on the solid Au 750 signature gold cap and barrel, which is partly set with brilliant-cut diamonds and enhanced with swirling engravings that echo the movements of Vincent’s brush over the canvas.
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