Did Van Gogh Use Watercolors? Unpacking the Artist’s Secret Medium

Everyone knows Van Gogh for his thick, passionate brushstrokes and those wild swirls of oil paint. But what most folks don’t realize is, yeah, he actually used watercolors too. It’s like finding out your favorite rock band also played acoustic sets on the side—it just adds a new layer to the story.

Watercolors aren’t usually the first thing that pops up when his name comes up, but there are real Van Gogh works done with them. They’re not just quick sketches either—some of them show real effort. If you dig into his early years, you’ll spot these pieces popping up when he was still learning the ropes. Turns out, watercolors helped Van Gogh practice color, try out new ideas quickly, and fill out sketchbooks when oil paints were either too pricey or messy to deal with.

• Van Gogh’s Relationship with Watercolors
• Rare Surviving Pieces
• How Van Gogh’s Watercolors Differ from His Oils
• Why Watercolors Didn’t Define His Career
• Common Themes and Motifs in His Watercolors
• Practical Tips for Painting Like Van Gogh with Watercolors

Van Gogh’s Relationship with Watercolors

When it comes to Vincent van Gogh, most people picture thick oil paintings—think “Starry Night” or “Sunflowers.” But here’s the twist: Van Gogh actually spent a chunk of his early artist life using watercolors. Between 1881 and 1890, he made over 150 watercolor pieces. That’s not small potatoes. He didn’t just knock these out for fun; he used them as a serious part of his training and even sold a few.

Early on, while living in the Netherlands, Van Gogh wanted to master the basics. Watercolors gave him a cheap, forgiving way to put ideas on paper fast. He sketched rural life, landscapes, and city scenes. Often, he’d start with pencil or ink and then pull out his watercolors to add color and energy. It became his go-to warm-up, especially when oil paints were too expensive. Plus, watercolors were easy to pack up and use outside. If you think about it, many young artists today do the same thing—practicing and learning on paper before moving on to bigger canvases.

He wasn’t shy about using whatever supplies he had on hand. Sometimes, he’d mix his own colors or layer watercolors on thick paper. He wrote letters to his brother Theo, talking about what he learned. In one note from 1882, he mentioned making studies “…to understand color better,” which shows how these works fit right into his bigger journey as an artist.

Here’s a quick snapshot of Van Gogh’s watercolor activity by year:

The key takeaway? Van Gogh used watercolors as a crucial step in his growth. It’s like hitting the gym before running a marathon—you’ve got to do the groundwork. While he became famous for oils later, watercolors played a big role in shaping his unique style and sense of color.

Rare Surviving Pieces

Most people picture Van Gogh with oil paints, but he actually made over 150 watercolors. Compared to the mountain of oil paintings and sketches he left behind, that's a small pile. What makes these watercolors special is how few have stood the test of time, thanks to how delicate and sensitive the medium is—it fades, stains, and gets damaged much easier than oils.

Some of his watercolors even carry the same punch as his big-name paintings. For example, there's “View of Paris” from 1886, where he captures rooftops and city life with fast, loose strokes and surprising color choices. Another one, “Peasant Woman Digging in Front of Her Cottage,” shows off earthy tones and that familiar Van Gogh vibe, just less heavy-handed than his oils. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam holds the biggest and best collection of these watercolors, but you’ll also find pieces in places like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and private collections around the world.

Here's a quick look at some of his well-known watercolor works and where they are now:

If you want to see one of these original Van Gogh watercolors, it’ll probably mean booking a trip or catching a big traveling exhibition. These pieces aren’t hiding, but they’re not exactly around every corner like prints of “Starry Night.” A lot of collectors and museums guard them closely because of how fragile they are. If you’ve ever been curious about the difference between his oils and watercolors, keep an eye out for museum shows—they sometimes make these hidden gems the headline act.

How Van Gogh’s Watercolors Differ from His Oils

When you compare Van Gogh’s watercolors to his oil paintings side by side, the difference is obvious. His oils burst with heavy, textured paint. Think “Starry Night” or those bold sunflower fields—that’s the stuff people snap selfies with. But the watercolors look softer, lighter, and less dramatic. Some folks even miss that they’re by Van Gogh at all.

The main reason is in the material. Oil paint is thick and slow to dry, so Van Gogh could work it over and over, creating swirls or rough patches. Watercolors, on the other hand, are transparent and dry super fast. They don’t let you pile up the paint. That forced Van Gogh to use quick, light touches, and his classic swirling moves just weren’t possible with watercolors. The look is more controlled and less bold.

Van Gogh’s watercolor scenes are often landscapes or sketches of daily life. He leaned on watercolors to capture shapes, light, and mood fast, sometimes finishing a piece in one sitting. Oil paintings, by contrast, were where he’d dig deep—layering and experimenting with color until he got things just right.

Take a peek at this table to see how things stack up:

One last thing to remember: Van Gogh’s watercolors sometimes look faded compared to his oil work. Watercolor pigment sits right on the paper and can lose its punch over time, especially if exposed to light. Oils stick around longer, which is probably part of why his famous oil canvases have that lasting, almost electric energy.

If you aim to paint like Van Gogh with watercolors, start with the same subjects—fields, cottages, or trees—but use gentler brushwork and expect more subtle colors. You can’t fake heavy texture with watercolors, but you can still nail those moody skies and bright touches he loved.

Why Watercolors Didn’t Define His Career

There’s a good reason why most people connect Van Gogh with oil paintings instead of watercolors. Oils let him play with thick textures, bold color, and those dramatic swirls he’s now famous for. Watercolors just couldn’t give him that same kind of kick.

Oil paint dries slowly, so Van Gogh had time to move things around, layer colors, and really work up those heavy brushstrokes. Watercolor doesn’t work that way. It dries quick and shows every move. For Van Gogh, who wanted to push and pull at his art until it felt just right, watercolors felt a little limiting.

Budget was another thing. When Van Gogh was tight on cash, watercolors gave him a cheaper way to experiment. But whenever he could get his hands on oil paints, he went back to them fast. In a letter to his brother Theo, he wrote,

"Oil painting is for me just what I need, and I feel more myself with it than with anything else."

It’s not like he ignored watercolors. He used them to sketch out ideas, study landscapes, or fill in color when paints ran low. But the big, powerful pieces—the ones you see in museums—almost always happened in oil. His heart was just never fully in the watercolor world.

If you’re wondering why his watercolor paintings aren’t plastered everywhere, that’s it. They didn’t give him the freedom or the punch he was after. His real breakthrough moments happened with oil, and that’s what shaped his legacy.

Common Themes and Motifs in His Watercolors

When you sit down and look at Van Gogh’s watercolors, a few patterns stand out immediately. First off, he stuck with a lot of the same subjects you’ll see in his oil paintings—nature, rural life, and bits of everyday street scenes. But the mood in these works is a bit calmer, maybe even more technical, since he used them for practice and quick studies.

Van Gogh’s favorite subjects for watercolors included:

• Landscapes. You’ll see a lot of fields, rivers, and Dutch countrysides. Stuff like “View of Het Scheepje” (1882) or “Landscapes with Dunes” (1883) are clear examples. He loved to capture how light played off these wide open scenes, but in a looser, lighter way than his thick oil paint style.
• Everyday workers. Van Gogh focused on real people—peasants digging, workers sewing, men fishing on riverbanks. “Woman Sewing” is a good catch, showing his respect for regular folks just doing their jobs.
• Local buildings and interiors. You’ll spot cottages, simple farmhouses, and the odd church or windmill. This helped him get proportions and colors right before committing to oil.
• Plants and trees. Just like in his later famous pieces, he practiced drawing and painting trees and garden scenes. The “Pollard Willow” watercolor is an example—it’s quick but shows his growing obsession with bold outlines and unusual color choices.

If you think these themes sound familiar, that’s the point. He was practicing what mattered to him most, just with a different set of tools. If you ever want to try painting like Van Gogh in watercolor, start with his go-to subjects: open landscapes, cottages, people working, and interesting tree shapes.

Even though Van Gogh’s watercolors never got as famous as his oils, the Van Gogh touch is all over them—down to earth, focused on simple scenes, and loaded with honest observation.

Practical Tips for Painting Like Van Gogh with Watercolors

If you want to give Van Gogh’s watercolor style a go, you don’t need fancy art school credentials or a giant studio. Here’s what actually helps get closer to that raw, punchy style, even with watercolors.

First off, Van Gogh’s watercolors weren’t about soft washes or tricky blending. He layered colors boldly, sometimes letting streaks or outlines show. You’ll get closest to his vibe if you let go of perfection and just focus on energy and movement. Look at his piece “Fishing Boats on the Beach at Saintes-Maries” (1888)—those bright blues and quick lines say it all.

• Van Gogh used regular student-grade watercolor palettes. No need to spend a fortune—his paints were basic, not top-shelf.
• For paper, he worked on what he had, often heavyweight or rough paper to take on more layers. Anything over 200gsm will work, so it won’t buckle easily.
• Skip tiny brushes. Grab medium or large round brushes so you can lay down color fast, just like he went at it with oil paint.

Try these three steps:

1. Start with a loose pencil sketch, just like Van Gogh did in his sketchbooks. Don’t worry about precise outlines—think shapes and general placement.
2. Use vibrant primary colors. He loved blues, reds, and yellows. Mix them right on the paper for that full-on, punchy effect instead of blending on a palette.
3. Layer with quick, confident brush strokes. Let your hand move fast—if it looks messy, you’re actually doing it right. Add ink or pencil lines on top if you like that sketchy feel.

You might be surprised by the results—sometimes messy turns into magic. Van Gogh made over 150 watercolors, so don’t feel bad if your first shots aren’t masterworks. It’s about the process.

Here’s a bonus: Van Gogh didn’t frame his mistakes as failures. Every piece was a practice round for the next. If Luna the cat wanders across your desk and leaves a pawprint on your paper, call it "unexpected texture." That’s how Van Gogh would have rolled.