The Van Gogh irises that brighten refrigerator magnets and wrap around coffee mugs are sweet. But they don’t compare to the real deal, unveiled Friday morning at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Vincent van Gogh’s 1890 “Irises, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence” is the third and final “mystery masterpiece” that the museum has presented as part of its centennial celebration. One of the Dutch artist’s most famous and appealing pictures, “Irises” is a big, exuberant bouquet — 3 feet tall and about 2 feet wide — of blue-violet blossoms and spiky green leaves in a gold vase by a sunny yellow wall.