Sower and Devil 1923

Albin Egger-Lienz painted "Sower and Devil" with what looks like oil on canvas, and I’m immediately drawn to the earth tones and thick application of paint, you can almost feel the weight of the medium. There are two figures, one lighter, one darker, and I can imagine Egger-Lienz wrestling with the duality of human nature. Was he thinking about the balance between creation and destruction, light and dark? Maybe the sower represents potential and growth, and the devil embodies the darker aspects of life – challenges, temptations, or the unknown. The brushstrokes are pretty expressive, especially on the sower's form, which suggest movement and energy. I see a relationship with other expressionists, like Munch, who also explored psychological themes through color and form. It’s like artists across time are in conversation, riffing off one another's ideas, each adding their own spin. Ultimately, these are more like feelings than facts, and these kinds of paintings keep the conversation going.