Although Van Gogh did find some solace in Arles, mental illness eventually reigned ascendant, culminating in his notorious act of self-mutilation. In a violent fit following a heated argument with housemate and fellow artist Paul Gauguin, the artist cut off a portion of his earlobe. Vincent was immediately committed to the local hospital, Hôtel Dieu, where he was placed in solitary confinement. Pollack's photographs of the site convey the eeriness of the institution. Not surprisingly, Gauguin had vacated the yellow house they shared by the time Vincent was discharged less than two weeks after the initial altercation.

Tragically, Van Gogh was readmitted to the hospital one month later after another psychotic episode. Upon returning from his second stay, concerned locals filed a petition with the local government to have Vincent institutionalized yet again, claiming he was a danger to society. In this context, Van Gogh returned to the Hôtel Dieu for a third time. In May of 1889, only five months after the fight with Gauguin, the artist voluntarily committed himself to a different asylum in St.-Rémy-de-Provence.

1. Peter Pollack. Door to Vincent's Room at Hôtel Dieu. Photograph. 1949.
2. Susan Alyson Stein. Van Gogh: A Retrospective. New York: Hugh Lautner Levin Associates, 1986. Distributed by Macmillan.
3. Peter Pollack. Vincent's Bed at Hôtel Dieu. Photograph. 1949.
4. Peter Pollack. Hôtel Dieu Entrance. Photograph. 1949.
5. Peter Pollack. Hôtel Dieu Gardens. Photograph. 1949.