Woman in Dark Dress, Walking 1886

Vincent van Gogh sketched "Woman in Dark Dress, Walking" using pencil. The image, created during a period of significant social stratification, offers a glimpse into the lives of the working class, particularly women. Van Gogh's choice to depict a woman in a dark dress is striking. The color and style of dress could signify mourning, or more likely poverty and the lack of resources to appear more lively. The sketch emphasizes the woman's solitary figure, head bowed, burdened by a weight we can only imagine. The sketch holds a quiet tension, reflective of the artist’s deep empathy for his subjects, and prompts questions about the woman's life. "It is looking at things for a long time that ripens you and gives you a deeper meaning", he once wrote. The artwork departs from traditional, idealized representations of women. Van Gogh invites us to consider the untold stories of those living on the margins of society.