Girl with Straw Hat, Sitting in the Wheat 1890

Vincent van Gogh made this drawing of a woman with pen and ink, yet it is difficult to pin down exactly when. At first glance, this image, drawn with a frantic energy, shows a woman working in the fields. But let’s think about how it creates meaning. The drawing shows a woman wearing a fashionable hat and dotted top which are at odds with the rural setting. It is more likely a middle-class woman is playing at being a peasant, in keeping with a wider trend for romanticising the rural poor, or of seeing the countryside as a site for leisure. Van Gogh had always had an interest in the lives of ordinary people. Researching the relevant illustrated magazines of the time may reveal how the image relates to changing ideas about social class. Ultimately, the meaning of art depends on its social and institutional context.