Van Gogh travelled to Paris in early July to visit Theo, Jo and baby Vincent, only to discover that Theo and the baby were both ill, Jo was suffering from exhaustion, and Theo was having financial problems. Upon his return to Auvers, Van Gogh descended into a deep depression, tormented by concern for his brother and feeling like a burden.
On 27 July 1890, Van Gogh began a letter to Theo which he never completed. In the midst of writing he walked beyond the town to the fields, where he shot himself. He managed to stagger back to his room, where he was discovered by Dr. Gachet, still clinging to life. On 29 July 1890, Vincent van Gogh died in his brother’s arms. Sadly, within six months, Theo too was stricken with mental illness and died. The two brothers are buried side by side at Auvers.
Wheat Field with Crows is one of Van Gogh’s last paintings, and betrays a deeply troubled mind. Suggestive of impending gloom or even death, Van Gogh himself described it as a reflection of his “great sadness and extreme solitude.”