Her Vision, His Genius: How Jo van Gogh-Bonger rescued Vincent van Gogh’s Legacy

By Joan Fernandez | On April 8, 2025 | Comments (0)

Saving Vincent: A Novel of Jo van Gogh (She Writes Press, April 15, 2025) by Joan Fernandez is based on the true story of the fascinating woman who singlehandedly rescued Vincent van Gogh’s artistic legacy (Photo at right, Jo in 1889; photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons). Here, Joan introduces her novel:

In 1891, timid Jo van Gogh-Bonger lived safely in the background of her art dealer husband Theo’s passionate for selling work by unknown artists, especially his ill-fated, deceased brother Vincent.

When Theo van Gogh died unexpectedly, Jo’s brief happiness was shattered. Her inheritance—hundreds of unsold paintings by Vincent—was worthless. Pressured to move back to her parents’ home, Jo defied tradition, opened a boarding house to raise her infant son alone, and chose to promote Vincent’s art herself.

Her ingenuity and persistence drew the powerful opposition of a Parisian art dealer who vowed to stop her and sink Vincent into obscurity. It would take Jo fifteen years for the world to finally take note of Vincent van Gogh.

. . . . . . . . . . .

Learn more about Saving Vincent by Joan Fernandez
Saving Vincent is available on Bookshop.org*, Amazon*,
and wherever books are sold

. . . . . . . . . . .

As I researched and wrote my story about Jo, I frequently returned to a few questions to deepen and explore her story. Why was Jo so fully invested in promoting Vincent, and how did she guide his works to rise from anonymity into the worldwide adoration we know him today.

How could Jo be so certain that Vincent was an amazing talent when so many art experts said he was not? Here are some fascinating facts about Jo’s background and how she overcame resistance to her late brother-in-law’s artistic vision:

Translated musical concepts to visual appreciation. Jo grew up immersed in music thanks to her industrialist father, Hendrik, who splurged on music lessons for his seven children, and frequently took the family to concerts. In her studies, Jo earned the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree in music. She could draw from this early exposure to music’s abstract concepts when appreciating Van Gogh’s art.

Acquired art knowledge through Theo’s tutelage. After Jo became engaged to Vincent’s brother, Theo van Gogh, they lived apart: Jo in Amsterdam and Theo in Paris. As a result, nearly every day they exchanged letters, discussing several topics but many were on art, reflecting Jo’s keen interest in Theo’s work as an art dealer.  Once they married, Jo became a behind-the-scenes confidante to Theo. This was an unofficial apprenticeship for when she had to make decisions on Vincent’s art after Theo’s death, Jo would recall what she had learned from their conversations.

Found personal connection to Vincent through letters. Jo only met Vincent three times in life. A few years after his death, Jo discovered that Theo had hoarded his correspondence with his brother—800+ letters over ten years—and she read them all. The correspondence opened the elusive brother-in-law to her as he shared dreams, hopes, philosophies and commentary on his own art. Vincent’s inner life was revealed to her and she became personally invested in his success instead of relying on Theo’s judgement alone.

. . . . . . . . . . .

Jo (Johanna) van Gogh-Bonger in 1890  with baby son
Vincent Willem (photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
. . . . . . . . . . .

As Jo faced resistance to Vincent’s art, what did she do to overcome it?

Followed counterintuitive marketing instincts. After Theo’s death, Jo inherited all of Vincent’s artwork. Within a few months, she moved to a small town in the Netherlands. She took ten crates of Vincent Van Gogh paintings with her, despite the objection of Theo’s artist friends. They argued that Paris was the epicenter of art trading. Jo had a different idea. Her first strategy was to approach Dutch art dealers to sell and exhibit his works. Vincent’s artwork was already outside the norm; gaining a foothold among his native Dutch countrymen gave her confidence, and was an initial step to his being accepted elsewhere. The plan worked.

Cultivated Van Gogh fandom. Based on her own experience of appreciating Vincent after reading his letters, Jo began to loan the letters to critics. In the process, this turned them into advocates in the process. She ran excerpts of Van Gogh’s letters (along with drawings) in a series of six articles over several months in a Parisian art magazine. This generated curiosity among the art-loving public, bypassing the art dealers and art critics who were gatekeepers when it came to what the public saw.

Drew upon Vincent’s art to support poverty relief. Caring about the impoverished working class was a core value for Jo. As a little girl, she had been dismayed by the risk and dangers of dock workers employed in the shipping trade where her father worked. Vincent also identified with laborers, feeling more at home with them instead of “money men.” Inspired by this shared empathy, Jo broadened access to Vincent’s art by paying entry fees for the poor and discounting or waiving them for students and workers.

Held to ambitious vision. Jo holds the record for staging the largest museum exhibition of Van Gogh art ever: she refused to take no for an answer when she requested an exhibit at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam’s premier art museum dedicated to modern art. On her third try, the museum directors acquiesced. Over seven weeks (July 15 – Aug 30, 1905), Jo rented out seven galleries to display 484 works, drawing an estimated audience of 4,500 people. This strategy proved successful, marking the breakthrough she had sought. As a result, Vincent’s name was cemented alongside Cezanne and Gauguin as a founder of modern art.

Through a combination of innate artistic sensibility, honed through musical education and an unexpected apprenticeship with her art dealer husband, Jo van Gogh developed a unique understanding of Vincent’s work. Driven by a profound conviction forged through his letters and a resolute belief in his genius, she defied conventional wisdom and followed her own counterintuitive marketing ideas despite resistance from the status quo.

What a joy it has been for me to share how Jo’s unwavering ambition catapulted Van Gogh from obscurity to securing a permanent place for him in history. Jo’s extraordinary vision is an inspiration.

Joan Fernandez is a novelist who brings to light brilliant women’s courageous deeds in history. She is a former senior marketing executive and general partner of the financial powerhouse Edward Jones. In 2018, she retired from a 30+ year career to be a full-time writer. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society, the Author’s Guild, and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA). In April 2020, she founded a Historical Fiction affinity group within WFWA that grew from a handful of people to nearly two hundred authors. Her short story, “A Parisian Daughter,” is published in the anthology, Feisty Deeds: Historical Fictions of Daring Women. Saving Vincent, A Novel of Jo van Gogh, (April, 2025) is her debut novel. Find her at JoanFernandez.com.

Further reading 

• Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam)
• The Woman Who Made Vincent van Gogh
• Johanna van Gogh and Vincent’s Legacy

Categories: Other Voices