Clumps of Grass

Van Gogh's Clumps of Grass from 1889, now at the Pola Museum of Art in Japan, belongs to his Saint-Rémy close-observation series of specific plant forms. Focusing on ground-level vegetation — the clumps of Mediterranean grass in the asylum garden — gave him a subject at once completely humble and completely demanding, requiring the same sustained attention as any other motif. Van Gogh's grass studies at Saint-Rémy reflect his belief that the near-at-hand rewards looking as much as the panoramic. The Pola Museum holds several Van Gogh works within its collection.

The grass clumps fill the composition with an intricate pattern of blades and stems, each rendered with observational care. Van Gogh's Saint-Rémy technique animates even this humble subject — the grass alive with directional strokes of varied greens. The ground between the clumps is treated with equal care. The overall effect is a surface of concentrated natural attention.