Two crabs

Two crabs sprawl across a churning field of green in this 1889 painting by Vincent van Gogh, one flipped onto its back with claws in the air, the other planted upright and solid. The pairing almost feels like a single crab shown twice, caught in two poses at once. Van Gogh loaded his brush with fiery oranges and reds for the shells, and against the cool green water they practically glow. Even here, with a subject as plain as seafood, his thick and restless brushstrokes keep everything in motion.

Van Gogh likely worked on this piece during his stay at the asylum in Saint-Rémy, a rough stretch in his life when painting gave him something steady to hold onto. He adored Japanese prints, which often placed animals and sea creatures front and center in bold, uncluttered arrangements, and some scholars suspect he based these crabs on a Japanese illustration rather than living ones on his table. Whatever the source, the result speaks to his knack for turning the everyday into something warm and alive, proof that a couple of crabs could carry real color and energy.