“The Sower (Sower with Setting Sun),” created in 1888 in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, France, is an oil painting on canvas by the renowned artist Vincent van Gogh, representing the Post-Impressionism art movement. Measuring 162.5 by 204.5 cm, this genre painting is housed at the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, Netherlands.
The artwork captures a farmer sowing seeds in a vast, sunlit field under the intense glow of a setting sun. The powerful rays dominate the upper portion of the painting, radiating with vivid yellows and oranges, which gradually blend into the golden hues of the field below. The figure of the sower, rendered in deep blues and earthy browns, strides purposefully across the field, casting a long shadow. Van Gogh’s characteristic use of dynamic, swirling brushstrokes imbues the painting with a sense of movement and vitality, encapsulating the ritual of sowing as an enduring cycle of labor and renewal. The contrast between the vibrant sky and the richly textured earth demonstrates van Gogh’s mastery in conveying emotion through color and form.
