Welcome to Van Gogh community of Etten-Leur!
Close to bustling Breda you will find our beautiful municipality (44,000 inhabitants) which has five official Van Gogh Monuments, plenty of urban amenities and village coziness for a pleasant stay. Etten-Leur can surprise you! These are the steps you can take in the footsteps of Vincent van Gogh:
1 Your visit to Van Gogh Etten-Leur starts at our information point in the Etten-Leur City Shop at Markt 4. Here our volunteers will show you around. The picturesque building is also your entrance to Van Gogh Kerk and the ideal starting point for various walks and bicycle tours.
2 Of course, a visit to Etten-Leur is not complete without having been to Van Gogh Kerk. Here everything is told about Vincent's arrival, stay and departure from Etten. Following or preceding your visit, you can watch the wonderful docu-film 'Vincent van Gogh, a sower in Etten' in our Petit Cinema. The film lasts about half an hour and is absolutely worth watching! Please note: due to refurbishment, the church will be closed until May 2025.
3 In addition to a visit to the church, you can also take a look at Museum De Kunst van het Leven, a little further on the Market Square, in the beautiful Sint Paulushofje. In the hofje and in the museum you will take a step back in time and learn a lot about the history and development of Etten-Leur.
4 A visit to Van Gogh Etten-Leur is extra fun and interesting with a City Walk. Our guides will tell you about the rich history and places with great stories.
5 At the Info Point you can find numerous walking and cycling routes. And a nice souvenir, of course.
In the picturesque building at Markt 4, the Etten-Leur City Shop houses our information point. Here we welcome you to visit Etten-Leur and Van Gogh. We are open from Tuesday to Saturday and on December 15, 22 and 29, 2024 from 13.00-16.00.
In a permanent exhibition, the Van Gogh Kerk tells the story of the importance of Vincent's period in the North Brabant town of Etten. This fascinating story is revealed with a timeline, informative wall panels, display cases, sculptures, colorful windows and an exciting animation full of passion in this former Dutch Reformed church.
PLEASE NOTE: the church is temporarily closed due to redevelopment. We will reopen in the spring of 2025.
In the 'Petit Cinéma' next to the Van Gogh Kerk, the (multilingual) film Vincent van Gogh, a sower in Etten is running on request. It is one of the smallest cinemas in the Netherlands. The film lasts just under 30 minutes and is breathtakingly beautiful. Highly recommended!
Combine your visit to the church with a visit to Museum The Art of Living, a few hundred meters away, opposite Lambertus Church, at Market 59 in the picturesque Saint Paul's Court. Here you step back in Vincent's time and experience together with Vincent, among other things, the authentic Farmer's Room.
If you want to learn all about Vincent van Gogh in Etten-Leur, book a guided walk. The walk always includes a visit to the Van Gogh Kerk and is offered to groups of 5 or more.
Etten-Leur has five official Van Gogh Monuments. Each of them are special places. Read their stories and go see them!
Throughout the year there are various activities around Van Gogh. From exhibitions to concerts. What's special is that quite a few of these activities take place in or around our Van Gogh Monuments. 2024 is the Year of the Sunflower. Etten-Leur will elaborate with the world's largest living sunflower painting.
Etten-Leur combines city fraatures with village coziness. But here you will also find plenty of pollard-willow lanes. As if you were walking or cycling in a painting by Van Gogh! A versatile (indoor) shopping center, a marina, a wide range of catering and recreational businesses, the picturesque Paulushofje and of course the Moeierboom ('The Tree of the Year 2020-2021') make us surprisingly versatile.
The Van Gogh Kerk Etten-Leur has a nice cooperation with KOEPEL, the Marketplace for Culture and Nature Education. For example, for groups 6, 7 and 8 of primary education, the project 'Understand Vincent' is offered.
