Route Van Gogh Borinage

There are still today many traces of van Gogh’s passage in Borinage between 1878 and 1880. Living successively in Colfontaine, Wasmes and Cuesmes, two of the houses where he lived are today accessible to the public, and are a key stop for pilgrims. Another place to see is the site of Marcasse where one must make a reservation to visit. It is worth a detour with its famous mine shafts, where a 700-meter descent had impressed van Gogh.


But the traces of Vincent in the Borinage is not only the place where the artist was born, but also where he deepened his artistic thoughts. In his later works one can see the echo of the motifs which inspire the region: the everyday life of the miners, the workers, the peasants and the weavers, their modest homes, but also copies of the engravings of artists such as Jean-François Millet which were made at the start of his career and which Van Gogh revisted later, at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and Auvers-sur-Oise.
 
Relive this period which was so important to the life of van Gogh, starting with a discovery of the Borinage and the different places that influenced the artist during his stay. All the sites today are witnesses to the industrial history of the region, and of the traces left by van Gogh.
All these sites cannot be visited. We advise inquiring about the possibilities with visitMons, which organizes guided tours on request, and proposes a guide to download.