The harvest

Van Gogh considered this impressive vista as one of his finest works. The colours of the southern French countryside in summer dominate this painting: the warm yellowy-gold of the wheat and azure green of the shimmering light. The painting shows the plain of La Crau, outside Arles, with in the distance the Alpilles mountain range. For the foreground Van Gogh used touches of paint in various directions, while for the background he applied more uniform colour patches, thereby creating extra depth.