walther and metzger, in "van gogh: the complete paintings", state that "there is nothing in van gogh's words to support a simplistic interpretation along the lines of artistic "angst" and despair – nor is there any evidence for the widely-held belief that it was this painting that van gogh had on his easel at the time he killed himself." they refer to a june 1880 letter of van gogh's, in which he compared himself to a bird in a cage, and remark: "the crows in the painting, in other words, were an altogether personal symbol closely associated with van gogh's own life".