"The Sower" by Vincent Van Gogh

Throughout his life Vincent Van Gogh has always admired nature, farmers and simple life, which is why the Dutch artist has often portrayed humble subjects and scenes of everyday life in his paintings. 

Among his most famous works there is "The Sower", a picture created by the artist in two different versions. Today both paintings are kept in two prestigious museums: the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, both in the Netherlands.

"The Sower" - the version of the painting kept at the Van Gogh Museum 

Created in 1888, "The Sower" kept at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is a 32 X 40 cm painting and, as it can be deduced, it depicts a farmer intent on sowing.

In the picture you can see a farmer who is sowing, with the sun behind him about to set. On the right of the peasant you can also see an oblique tree trunk, with few branches and without leaves, which underlines the sowing season. 

The colours that Van Gogh has chosen to create this painting are very interesting: brown, purple and green to represent the field and the tree and yellow for the sky, thus creating a sharp contrast between the earth and the sky. Moreover, in the painting you can see the sun tending to dissolve in the sky and the two elements that become one.

"The Sower" - the version of the painting kept in the Kröller-Müller Museum

Produced in 1888 as well, the second picture, which is also called "The Sower", is a different painting from the first both in colour and in terms of subjects and dimensions. In fact, we are talking about a larger canvas, 64.2 X 80.3 cm, in which the tree is no longer there and the farmer is not in the foreground as in the first painting, but he is further away and he is located on the right. 

In this case also, behind the peasant who is sowing the field there is the sun shining, even if it is almost sunset time. Behind the farmer there is also a field of wheat ready to be harvested, a gold-coloured field, clearly in contrast to the part where the sower works, which is brown and blue, shades that can also be seen on the farmer's clothes. 

Finally, the work is completed by the bright yellow of the sun and the sky, a colour often found in Van Gogh's works. 

Flowers, starry skies, tree branches, wheat fields, vineyards, terraces, houses and farmers are among the most beloved subjects of the Dutch painter and today, many paintings depicting these scenes and subjects are considered among the most important and expensive in the world. Think for example of "The Starry Night" dated 1889, "Iris" painted in 1889, "Almond Blossom" made in 1890, "Potato Eaters" created in 1885, "Sunflowers" dated 1888-1889, "Wheatfield with Crows" made in 1890, "Café Terrace at Night" created in 1888 or "Starry Night over the Rhone" painted in 1888.

Article by: Aurora Caraman