Field with Flowers near Arles

Vincent van Gogh painted this cheerful field scene in the spring of 1888, not long after settling in Arles in the south of France. He had come south chasing the strong sunlight and rich colors of Provence, and this picture shows exactly what drew him there. Purple irises crowd the foreground, standing tall among green stalks, while a golden field stretches back toward the little town. If you follow the horizon, you will find the rooftops and church towers of Arles poking up behind a line of trees.

The way van Gogh applied his paint gives the whole thing a sense of restless life. Short, thick strokes fill the sky with movement, the meadow glows with mixed yellows and greens, and the irises pop in cool blues and violets against all that warmth. Arles was a hopeful and busy chapter for him, and he turned out landscape after landscape during these months. The subject could not be more ordinary, just flowers in a field, but his energetic hand makes it feel like the season itself is buzzing right in front of you.