You’ve seen the sunflowers. You probably know about the ear. But if you really want to understand the man who painted the stars like they were swirling whirlpools of fire, you have to look at the floorboards he stepped on. Honestly, Vincent van Gogh was a nomad. He wasn't some hermit tucked away in a single Parisian attic for his whole life. He moved around. A lot. During his thirty-seven years, he lived in over twenty different cities across four countries. It’s a dizzying itinerary. It’s also the only way to track his descent from a hopeful preacher into the "mad" artist the world eventually fell in love with.
When people ask where did Vincent van Gogh live, they usually expect a short answer like "France." While France is where he finished his story, his journey started in the muddy, flat landscapes of the Netherlands. He was a restless soul. He’d settle into a room, paint the walls, get into a fight with a landlord or a woman or a priest, and then pack his bags again. It was a cycle of searching for "home" and never quite finding it until he was six feet under.
The Early Years: Windmills and Coal Dust
Vincent was born in Groot Zundert in 1853. It’s a small village in the south of the Netherlands. His father was a minister, and the parsonage there was respectable, quiet, and—for a kid like Vincent—probably a bit suffocating. He spent his childhood wandering the fields, which gave him that deep, lifelong connection to nature. He didn't stay long. By his teens, he was off to boarding schools and eventually to The Hague, London, and Paris to work as an art dealer for Goupil & Cie.
London was a weirdly happy time for him at first. He lived in a house on Hackford Road in Brixton. He fell in love with his landlady’s daughter (it didn't go well). He loved Charles Dickens. He walked everywhere. But the rejection he faced in London sent him into a religious tailspin.
This led him to the Borinage. If you want to see the darkest chapter of his life, look at the coal mining district in Belgium. He lived in Petit-Wasmes and Cuesmes in 1878 and 1879. He didn't live like a "gentleman" anymore. He gave away his clothes. He slept on the floor. He wanted to be a martyr for the poor miners. The church thought he was losing his mind and fired him. It was here, in the literal dirt and soot of Belgium, that he decided to become an artist. He had nothing else left.
The Dutch Return and the Nuenen Breakout
By 1883, he was back with his parents in Nuenen. This is where he painted The Potato Eaters. It’s a grim, dark, masterpiece. He lived in the laundry room of his parents' house because he couldn't get along with his father. Think about that for a second. One of the greatest painters in history was literally living in the wash house, smelling of turpentine and damp clothes, while his family tried to act like everything was normal at dinner.
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He stayed in Nuenen for about two years. It was productive, but it was lonely. After his father died of a stroke on the doorstep of that very house, Vincent knew he had to leave the Netherlands for good. He spent a brief, hungry stint in Antwerp—where he discovered Japanese prints and started drinking way too much absinthe—before making the jump to Paris.
Paris: The Colors Finally Turn On
In 1886, Vincent showed up unannounced at his brother Theo’s apartment in Montmartre. This is the period everyone thinks of when they wonder where did Vincent van Gogh live during his "cool" phase. They lived at 54 Rue Lepic. It was a third-floor apartment with a view of the city.
Paris changed him. Basically, he went from painting "mud" to painting "light." He met Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul Gauguin. He saw the Impressionists. But the city was too loud. Too fast. Too many people arguing in cafes. Vincent was a country boy at heart. He lasted two years in Paris before his nerves started to fray. He needed the sun. He needed the South. He hopped on a train to Arles in February 1888, famously hoping to find a "Japan of the South."
Arles and the Famous Yellow House
If you go to Arles today, you can't see the Yellow House. It was hit by a bomb during World War II. But you can stand on the spot at Place Lamartine. Vincent lived here from May 1888 until May 1889. This was his dream. He wanted to start an artist colony. He painted the house yellow because he wanted it to be a beacon of light and friendship.
This is where the famous bedroom was. The one with the simple wooden bed and the blue walls. He lived there with Gauguin for nine weeks, and it was a disaster. Two egos in a small yellow house is a recipe for a breakdown. It ended with the ear incident. After that, the townspeople of Arles—the very people he had been painting—signed a petition to have him locked up. They called him "le fou roux" (the redheaded madman). Imagine living in a town where your neighbors literally vote to evict you for being weird. That was Vincent's reality in Arles.
The Walls of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole
When he couldn't live on his own anymore, he checked himself into an asylum. Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. It was a former monastery called Saint-Paul-de-Mausole. He had two rooms: one to sleep in and one to use as a studio.
He lived there for a year.
From his window, with its iron bars, he watched the wheat field change with the seasons. He saw the stars. He painted The Starry Night while living as a voluntary prisoner. It’s arguably the most famous landscape in history, and it was created in a room where he wasn't even allowed to go outside some days because of his "attacks." The doctors let him paint in the garden, which was overgrown and wild. He found a strange kind of peace in the confinement. But he eventually felt he was "rusting" there. He needed to get back to the North.
The Final 70 Days in Auvers-sur-Oise
In May 1890, Vincent moved to Auvers-sur-Oise, a village just north of Paris. He lived in a tiny attic room at the Auberge Ravoux. The room was roughly seven square meters. It was sparse. It was cheap—3.50 francs a day.
He chose Auvers to be near Dr. Paul Gachet, a physician who specialized in "melancholy." Vincent was incredibly productive here. He painted almost a canvas a day. He’d walk into the fields with his easel, paint the crows and the stormy skies, and then come back to his little room above the restaurant.
On July 27, 1890, he walked into those same fields and shot himself in the chest. He stumbled back to the Auberge Ravoux, climbed the stairs to his attic bed, and died two days later with Theo by his side. That attic room is still there. It’s empty. No furniture. Just the walls. It’s probably the most poignant place he ever lived because it was the last.
Why His Locations Matter More Than You Think
You can't separate the art from the GPS coordinates. When Vincent lived in the Borinage, his art was heavy and dark because his life was heavy and dark. When he lived in the Yellow House, his colors exploded because he was full of hope for a future with other artists. When he lived in the asylum, his brushstrokes became swirling and rhythmic because he was trying to process his internal chaos.
Every time someone asks where did Vincent van Gogh live, the real answer is: he lived in a state of constant transit. He was looking for a place where he could belong, but he only really belonged in his canvases.
- The Netherlands: The foundation of his grit and his love for the "common man."
- Belgium: The spiritual crisis that birthed the artist.
- Paris: The technical explosion where he learned to use color.
- The South of France: The peak of his genius and the start of his tragic end.
How to Follow the Van Gogh Trail Today
If you’re planning a trip to see these places, don't just go to the museums. The museums have the paintings, but the towns have the ghosts.
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- Start in Amsterdam. Visit the Van Gogh Museum to see the collection, obviously. But then take a train to Nuenen. It’s basically an outdoor museum where you can see the parsonage and the locations of his early works.
- Go to Arles. Walk the "Van Gogh Route." It’s touristy, but standing by the Rhône river where he painted Starry Night Over the Rhône at night is still a vibe.
- Visit Saint-Paul-de-Mausole. You can actually walk into the room that looks exactly like the one he lived in. The lavender fields nearby still smell the same as they did in 1889.
- End in Auvers-sur-Oise. Visit the Auberge Ravoux. Stand in the empty attic room. Then walk up the hill to the cemetery where Vincent and Theo are buried side-by-side under a blanket of ivy.
Vincent’s life was a map of Europe drawn in frustration and brilliance. He never owned a home. He never had a mortgage. He just had a series of rented rooms and a brother who paid the bills. Knowing where he lived doesn't just give you a geography lesson—it gives you a map of a human heart trying to find a place to rest. He finally found it in Auvers, under the ivy, next to the brother who never gave up on him.