Street in Auvers-sur-Oise by Vincent Van Gogh in the year 1890. Upon his arrival in Auvers-sur-Oise, a small town northwest of Paris, in May 1890, Van Gogh composed a letter to his brother and sister-in-law: "Auvers is really beautiful-among other things many old thatched roofs, which are becoming rare. It’s the heart of the countryside, distinctive and picturesque.