Coucher de soleil en Hollande 1868

Johan Barthold Jongkind painted this "Sunset in Holland" using oil on canvas, likely in 1866. Looking closely, you can see how the textures of the painting itself - the brushstrokes and layered pigment - become part of the image. Jongkind used thick, gestural brushstrokes, particularly in the sky and water. These marks give the work an incredible sense of immediacy. The painting is not trying to trick you into thinking you are seeing a literal sunset. Instead, you see a sunset translated through Jongkind's uniquely material sensibility. The artist was deeply involved in the avant-garde movements of his day. Yet, at the end of the day, what we see is an artist with a keen eye, using a traditional medium to capture a fleeting moment in time, but imbuing the work with his own haptic sensibility. The painting reminds us that art is not just about representation. It is also about the skillful manipulation of materials.