Van Gogh in

rue Laval

When Vincent arrived in Paris on 28 February 1886, a few months earlier than planned, he moved into his brother Theo’s small apartment at 25 Rue Laval (now Rue Victor Massé). In a letter sent before Vincent left Antwerp, Theo had told him the flat was too small to share and it would be best if he waited until after the first of June, when the lease would end. But Vincent was unable to wait and turned up early. The flat was too small for him to work in, and in the first months, he went to Fernand Cormon’s studio to draw and paint, working from nude models and antiquities. On 1 June, the brothers moved to a larger apartment on Rue Lepic that had a small room Vincent could use as a studio.