A painting created by Vincent van Gogh just before his death has been revealed to the public for the first time in over 60 years. It is anticipated to break the all-time record for a Van Gogh artwork at an auction this coming November.

According to Reuters and AFP, on the 13th (local time), Van Gogh's 1890 work "Blossoming Chestnut Trees" (Châtaigniers en fleurs) went on display at Sotheby’s gallery in Hong Kong ahead of its upcoming auction on November 18 in New York, USA.

Sotheby's expects the piece to fetch around $180 million (approx. 242 billion KRW), far surpassing the previous record. The current highest auction record for a Van Gogh work is held by Orchard with Cypresses, which sold for $117.2 million (approx. 158 billion KRW) in 2022.

According to Sotheby’s, the artwork has not been shown to the public for over 60 years.

The painting features a large, blossoming chestnut tree filling the canvas. Beneath the tree, three women dressed in traditional Japanese-style attire are depicted, alongside a man passing by. It is characterized by the "impasto" oil painting technique, which builds up thick layers of paint.

Created in May 1890, this piece is one of approximately 70 paintings completed during the final two months of Van Gogh’s life, following his discharge from the psychiatric hospital in Saint-Rémy, France.

Before passing away in July 1890 at the age of 37, Van Gogh stayed in the French village of Auvers-sur-Oise, producing artwork at a rate of roughly one painting per day.

Scott Niichel, Vice Chairman at Sotheby's, told AFP, "This work is one of the most expressive and hopeful pieces among the final works Van Gogh left behind as he concluded his life as an artist."

Niichel added, "Such frantically layered paint marks show that Van Gogh still had so much he wanted to express and was rushing to capture it all on canvas."

This painting is one of 12 items from the collection of the late Argentine art collectors Nelly Arrieta de Blaquier and Carlos Pedro Blaquier. Works by Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, and Paul Cézanne will also be featured alongside it in the auction.

Notably, Cézanne's work Harlequin (Arlequin), which is also being put up for auction, is drawing significant attention as it has not been seen by the public for decades. This piece is projected to fetch around $120 million (approx. 161 billion KRW).

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