“Lumber Sale” is a watercolor painting on paper by Vincent van Gogh, created in 1883 during his time in The Hague, Netherlands. The artwork belongs to the Realism movement and falls under the genre painting category. Currently, it resides in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
The artwork depicts a bustling scene at a lumber sale, illustrating a group of people congregating around a building and stacks of wooden planks and logs. The earthy colors and deliberate brush strokes capture the atmosphere of a workday, characterized by a sense of community and activity. In the foreground, individuals are seen moving and engaging in what could be transactions or conversations, while the figures further inside the composition merge into the background, emphasizing the collective nature of the scene. The muted tones and the intricate details of the figures and structures reflect Van Gogh’s inclination towards Realism, portraying everyday scenarios with a sense of authenticity and simplicity.