Sunset c. 1849 - 1850

"Sunset" is an undated pastel drawing by Eugène Delacroix housed in the Städel Museum. The drawing offers a captivating play of light and color that immediately draws the eye. Broad strokes of blues and oranges dominate the sky, set against a dark, almost somber horizon. Delacroix was a master of Romanticism, and here, he uses color not merely to depict a scene but to evoke feeling. The high contrast in color and tone suggests a struggle between light and darkness, evoking the sublime, a key concept for Romantic thinkers like Kant. The loose handling of the pastel medium lends an immediacy to the work, as if capturing a fleeting moment. It invites us to contemplate the transient nature of beauty. The composition’s simplicity reinforces this idea. It’s a scene stripped down to its basic elements: sky, light, and earth. This reduction allows us to focus on the interplay of these elements. Delacroix challenges us to consider how even a simple landscape can convey profound emotions.