Amsterdam Museum acquires 55 Van Gogh letters

AMSTERDAM, June 27 (Reuters) The Van Gogh Museum has acquired a collection of 55 letters written by the Dutch painter, from a private collector.

The letters, out of public view for 60 years, were written between 1881 and 1885 to fellow Dutch artist Anthon van Rappard, who lived in Brussels, the Amsterdam museum said yesterday.

It did not say how much it paid for the letters, but said the acquisition was made with the support of various financial contributors.

The Van Gogh Museum already owns some 700 letters by Vincent Van Gogh, most of which were written to his brother Theo, who supported him.

The newly acquired letters, however, present a correspondence between artists and are key to understanding Van Gogh's views and his development, the museum said.

In the exchanges, that include some sketches by Van Gogh, the two men discussed each other's work as well as literature and art.

Their friendship cooled after Van Rappard's exceptionally critical response to Van Gogh's painting ''The Potato Eaters'' and eventually their correspondence ended.

The largely self-taught Van Gogh's produced more than 800 paintings in a career that lasted only 10 years.

Some of his most famous works are ''Starry Night'' and ''Sunflowers''.

He also made more than 1,100 drawings, some of which he included in his letters to Theo and to other artists to keep them informed of his work.

The artist, who is considered the greatest Dutch painter after Rembrandt, committed suicide in 1890.

Reuters SY GC0908