In 1922 the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) became the first-ever American museum to acquire a painting by Vincent van Gogh. The museum paid a mere $4,200 for a self-portrait the artist had painted in 1887. A century later, that acquisition is paying dividends as the Motown museum hosts one of the largest-ever Van Gogh exhibitions, starting on Oct. 2.
The show will feature 74 of van Gogh’s paintings and drawings. Five already belong to the DIA, and 69 have been borrowed from 60 other museums and private collections around the globe. This required loans that were, in some cases, tough to come by: Owners resist parting with van Goghs for even for a few months.
