Vincent van Gogh painted at least 18 paintings of olive trees, mostly in Saint-R矇my-de-Provence in 1889. At his own request, he lived at an asylum there from May 1889 through May 1890 painting the gardens of the asylum and, when he had permission to venture outside its walls, nearby olive trees, cypresses and wheat fields.

This painting, 'Olive Orchard', is generally considered to have been influenced by Utagawa Hiroshige's 'Maiko Beach' (Harima, Maiko on hama), 1853, and it therefore belongs to Van Gogh's Japonaiserie paintings.